Bioactive compounds from alternative sources

Antioxidants and amtimicrobials from natural sources are becoming increasingly popular. Antioxidants in certain natural sources are heterogeneous group of substances, which can be separated on polarity bases with different solvents. Extracts prepared with different solvents differentiate in the antioxidant composition and consequently in their efficiency in various foods, with different water to lipids ratio. The aim of this study is to evaluate antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of extracts from different inexpensive or residual, alternative sources; for example Camelina sativa (with the popular names false flax or gold of pleasure) and Mediterranean hackberry or European nettle tree (Celtis australis L.). We also would like to determine antioxidant potencial of biomass from hyperthermophilic archaea Aeropyrum pernix. Antimicrobial and resistance modifying activity of bioactive substances against multidrug resistant food isolates of thermophilic Campylobacter spp. and Listeria monocytogenes will be tested. Growth inhibition of the bread mould Rhizopus nigricans by bioactive substances can be applied in food technology for growth prevention of this saprophytic fungus on certain food products. The interaction between bioactive substances and cytosolic progesterone receptors from the fungus R. nigricans can also be used for targeted inhibition studies of the relevant signal pathway as part of a defense mechanism of this microorganism. The results of self association of commercial accessible phenolic compounds obtained with classical methods will be compared with the data obtained with spectroscopic techniques like IR spectroscopy ornuclear magnetic resonance. The application of spectroscopic techniques make us possible to research the self association of phenolic compounds from plants, which are not accessible in larger amounts.