The elemental profiles of six honey samples from Malaysia had been constructed using the data obtained from both ICP-AES and ICP-MS. Potassium and sodium were the most abundant minerals covering from 69.3-78.6% and 14.1-28.7%, respectively. The ratio of potassium to sodium was more than one. Even though the minerals and trace elements composition varied dependent on the type of honey samples, there was no statistically significant difference between the analysed honey samples, namely tualang, gelam, acacia and a few forest honeys based on two-factor ANOVA and cluster analysis. The total element content of honey samples were strongly correlated with the electrical conductivity, but only have moderate correlation with the ash content and honey colour based on the regression analysis. PCA result on the available elemental data from worldwide honeys, including honey samples from Malaysia revealed that potassium and sodium were the mineral markers to distinguish honey origin. Both tualang and gelam honey samples from Malaysia have close mineral profile with sesame honeys from Egypt and multifloral honeys from India, whereas forest honeys Malaysia were near to avocado honeys from Spain and multifloral honeys from India.
A water extraction method has been used to extract plant proteins from the roots of Eurycoma longifolia harvested from Perak and Pahang, Malaysia. On the basis of the spectroscopic Bradford assay, Tongkat Ali Perak and Pahang contained 0.3868 and 0.9573 mg mL(-1) of crude protein, respectively. The crude proteins were separated by one dimensional 15% sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis into two (49.8 and 5.5 kD) and four (49.8, 24.7, 21.1 and 5.5 kD) protein spots for Tongkat Ali Perak and Pahang, respectively. Isoleucine was present in the highest concentration significantly. Both plant samples showed differences in the mineral and trace element profiles, but the minerals calcium, magnesium and potassium were present in the highest concentration. The highly concerned toxic metals such as arsenic and lead were not detected.
A study on the proximate composition, minerals, vitamins, carotenoids, amino acids, fatty acids profiles and some physicochemical properties of freeze dried Gracilaria changii was conducted. It was discovered that this seaweed was high in dietary fibre (64.74±0.82%), low in fat (0.30±0.02%) and Na/K ratio (0.12±0.02). The total amino acid content was 91.90±7.70% mainly essential amino acids (55.87±2.15mgg(-1)) which were comparable to FAO/WHO requirements. The fatty acid profiles were dominated by the polyunsaturated fatty acids particularly docosahexaenoic (48.36±6.76%) which led to low ω6/ω3, atherogenic, and thrombogenic index. The physicochemical properties of this seaweed namely the water holding and the swelling capacity were comparable to some commercial fibre rich products. This study suggested that G. changii could be potentially used as ingredients to improve nutritive value and texture of functional foods for human consumption.
Belinjau (Gnetum gnemon L.) seed flour was evaluated for nutritional composition, antioxidant activity and functional properties. Seed flour was found to be rich in protein (19.0g/100g), crude fibre (8.66g/100g), carbohydrates (64.1%), total dietary fibre (14.5%) and encompassed adequate amounts of essential amino acids, fatty acids and minerals. Antioxidant compounds such as total phenols (15.1 and 12.6mgGAE/100g), tannins (35.6 and 16.1mgCE/100g) and flavonoids (709 and 81.6mgCEQ/100g) were higher in ethanolic extracts over aqueous extracts, respectively. Inhibition of DPPH was high in ethanol extracts (48.9%) compared to aqueous extracts (19.7%), whereas aqueous extracts showed a higher FRAP value compared to ethanol extracts (0.98 and 0.61mmolFe(II)/100g, respectively). Results on functional properties revealed acceptable water and oil absorption capacities (5.51 and 1.98g/g, respectively), emulsion capacity and stability (15.3% and 6.90%, respectively), and foaming capacity (5.78%). FTIR spectral analysis showed seed flour to encompass major functional groups such as: amines, amides, amino acids, polysaccharides, carboxylic acids, esters and lipids. As belinjau seed flour possesses a rich nutraceutical value, it has high potential to be used as a basic raw material to develop new low cost nutritious functional foods.
The drinking and mineral water samples obtained from different geographical locations had concentrations of the selected minerals lower than the standard limits, except for manganese, arsenic, and fluoride. The concentrations of manganese and arsenic in two mineral water samples were slightly higher than the standard international recommended limits. One mineral water sample had a fluoride concentration higher than the standard limits, whereas manganese was not detected in nine drinking and mineral water samples. Most of the selected minerals found in the tap water samples were below the international standard limits, except for iron and manganese. The concentrations of iron and manganese in the tap water samples were higher than the standard limits, which were obtained from one and three of the studied locations, respectively. The potable water obtained from various manufacturers and locations in Peninsular Malaysia is safe for consumption, as the minerals concentrations were below the standard limits prescribed by the Malaysian Food Regulations of 1985. The data obtained may also provide important information related to daily intake of these minerals from drinking water.
Major (sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium) and minor elements (iron, copper, zinc, manganese) and one heavy metal (lead) of Cavendish banana flour and Dream banana flour were determined, and data were analyzed using multivariate statistical techniques of factor analysis and discriminant analysis. Factor analysis yielded four factors explaining more than 81% of the total variance: the first factor explained 28.73%, comprising magnesium, sodium, and iron; the second factor explained 21.47%, comprising only manganese and copper; the third factor explained 15.66%, comprising zinc and lead; while the fourth factor explained 15.50%, comprising potassium. Discriminant analysis showed that magnesium and sodium exhibited a strong contribution in discriminating the two types of banana flour, affording 100% correct assignation. This study presents the usefulness of multivariate statistical techniques for analysis and interpretation of complex mineral content data from banana flour of different varieties.
This study was undertaken to determine the effects of varied salinity regimes on the morphological traits (plant height, number of leaves, number of flowers, fresh and dry weight) and major mineral composition of 13 selected purslane accessions. Most of the morphological traits measured were reduced at varied salinity levels (0.0, 8, 16, 24 and 32 dS m(-1)), but plant height was found to increase in Ac1 at 16 dS m(-1) salinity, and Ac13 was the most affected accession. The highest reductions in the number of leaves and number of flowers were recorded in Ac13 at 32 dS m(-1) salinity compared to the control. The highest fresh and dry weight reductions were noted in Ac8 and Ac6, respectively, at 32 dS m(-1) salinity, whereas the highest increase in both fresh and dry weight was recorded in Ac9 at 24 dS m(-1) salinity compared to the control. In contrast, at lower salinity levels, all of the measured mineral levels were found to increase and later decrease with increasing salinity, but the performance of different accessions was different depending on the salinity level. A dendrogram was also constructed by UPGMA based on the morphological traits and mineral compositions, in which the 13 accessions were grouped into 5 clusters, indicating greater diversity among them. A three-dimensional principal component analysis also confirmed the output of grouping from cluster analysis.
The methanolic extracts of 13 accessions of purslane were analyzed for their total phenol content (TPC), total flavonoid contents (TFC), and total carotenoid contents (TCC) and antioxidant activity of extracts was screened using FRAP assay and DPPH radical scavenging methods. The TPC, TFC, and TCC ranged from 0.96 ± 0.04 to 9.12 ± 0.29 mg GAE/g DW, 0.13 ± 0.04 to 1.44 ± 0.08 mg RE/g DW, and 0.52 ± 0.06 to 5.64 ± 0.09 mg (β-carotene equivalent) BCE/g DW, respectively. The DPPH scavenging (IC50) activity varied between 2.52 ± 0.03 mg/mL and 3.29 ± 0.01 mg/mL and FRAP ranged from 7.39 ± 0.08 to 104.2 ± 6.34 μmol TE/g DW. Among all the measured micro- and macrominerals K content was the highest followed by N, Na, Ca, Mg, P, Fe, Zn, and Mn. The overall findings proved that ornamental purslane was richer in antioxidant properties, whereas common purslane possesses more mineral contents than ornamental ones.
Nutritional quality and antioxidant capacity of three edible wild berries (Rubus ellipticus Smith, Rubus niveus Thunb, Rubus ulmifolius L.) from Lesser Himalayan Range (LHR) were evaluated. Their edible portion was assayed for moisture, fats, ash, carbohydrates, proteins, fibers, essential minerals (Ca, P, Mg, K, Na, Cl, S, Mn, Zn, Fe, Cu, Se, Co, Ni) and DPPH free radical scavenging activity was applied to determine the antioxidant potential. The fruit of Rubus ulmifolius L. (blackberry) possessed the highest values of energy (403.29 Kcal), total protein (6.56g/100 g), Nitrogen (N) content (1500mg/100g), K (860.17mg/100g), Ca (620.56mg/100g), Zn (17.509mg/100g) and the strongest antioxidant activity (98.89% inhibition). While the raspberries (Rubus ellipticus Smith, Rubus niveus Thunb.) exhibited more significant contents of dietary fiber (5.90g/100g), carbohydrates (86.4 g/100 g) and Fe (4.249mg/100g). Significant variation was observed among the tested samples in all the investigated features. The combination of bio elements and active antioxidants clearly showed the applicability of these berries as a nutraceutical supplement.