Food & Nutrition Research Briefs, October 2007
Crushing unlocks garlic's heart-healthy
thiosulfinates.
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Consuming large amounts of raw garlic may be good for
your heart, but not necessarily your social life. So, how do we best enjoy
these pungent little bulbs without missing out on their impressive health
benefits? Crush them, then bake them slightly. That's according to Agricultural
Research Service (ARS) scientists and collaborators in Argentina who found that
lightly cooked, crushed garlic provides most of the health benefits found in
raw garlic.
Details:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2007/070918.htm
Scientific contact:
Philipp
W. Simon, (608) 262-1248; USDA-ARS
Vegetable
Crops Research Unit, Madison, Wis.
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These red and purple potatoes contain pigments
that are high in antioxidants.
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Americans love their spuds, consuming 130 pounds per
person annually. Now that culinary love affair could grow even more passionate
with Agricultural Research Service (ARS) findings that some potato varieties
are packed with health-promoting compounds called phytochemicals. Using a new
analytical method, ARS plant geneticist Roy Navarre and colleagues in
Washington State and Oregon have identified 60 different kinds of
phytochemicals and vitamins in the skins and flesh of 100 wild and commercially
grown potatoes.
Details:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2007/070907.htm
Scientific contact:
Roy
Navarre, (509) 786-9261; USDA-ARS
Vegetable
and Forage Crops Research Unit, Prosser, Wash.
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Blueberries may help protect brain cells from
inflammation.
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An abnormal immune system can mistake body tissue for a
foreign invader and attack it, causing inflammation. Researchers are learning
how similar dynamics occur in the brain. Agricultural Research Service (ARS)
scientists have found that blueberry extracts helped quell the inflammation
that was produced when the brain's immune cells responded to oxidative stress,
based on a culture of animal cells.
Details:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2007/070821.htm
Scientific contact:
James
A. Joseph, (617) 556-3178, ARS
Jean
Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, Boston,
Mass.
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Spinach—a good source of vitamin K. Photo
courtesy Stephen Peterson, USDA-ERS.
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Could getting enough dietary vitamin K help keep
osteoarthritis at bay? Study volunteers with the highest blood levels of the
main form of vitamin K, called phylloquinone, were associated with the lowest
risk, among participants, of having osteoarthritis in the hands and knees. The
study was conducted by Agricultural Research Service (ARS)-funded scientists.
Details:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2007/070801.htm
Scientific contact:
Sarah
L. Booth, (617) 556-3231, ARS
Jean
Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, Boston,
Mass.
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Pickles were taste-tasted in new research on
sought-after sourness.
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Food manufacturers may soon have more control over the
amount of sour taste that comes through in a variety of acidified food
products. Sour is one of only five primary human taste sensations, and is
stimulated by organic acids. In a study led by an Agricultural Research Service
(ARS) scientist, volunteers were presented with test solutions containing eight
different organic acidseither with one acid at a time, or as mixtures of
the acids. Organic acids are molecules characterized by the presence of
carboxyl groups, which is what makes them acidic. Surprisingly, molecules of
all eight organic acids were perceived to be equal in sour taste, provided that
at least one carboxyl group in a molecule had a hydrogen ion attached to it.
When no hydrogen ion was attached, no sour taste was detected at all.
Details:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2007/070705.htm
Scientific contact:
Roger
F. McFeeters, (919) 515-2990, USDA-ARS
Food
Science Research Unit, Raleigh, N.C.
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A new Internet resource helps companies answer food
safety questions and helps food processors make science-based food production
decisions. The Predictive Microbiology Information Portal (PMIP), available at
http://portal.arserrc.gov/, was
developed by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists at Wyndmoor, Pa.,
working with colleagues at USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service, Rutgers
University, and Decisionalysis Risk Consultants, Inc., in Canada. Currently,
PMIP offers information on research, regulations and resources related to
Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat foods, the prototype identified
for the project by FSIS. In the coming months, it will be expanded to include
other pathogen and food combinations.
Details:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2007/070919.htm
Scientific contact:
Vijay
K. Juneja, (215) 233-6500, USDA-ARS
Eastern
Regional Research Center, Wyndmoor, Pa.
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Three new kinds of seeded, red-fleshed watermelon
from ARS contain less sugar.
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Agricultural Research Service (ARS) plant geneticist
Angela Davis in Lane, Okla., has bred three new lower-sugar melons that should
be a welcome treat for dieters, diabetics and everyone else wishing to curb
their sugar or carb intakes. Davis is sharing the new watermelon stock with
interested growers. Like all watermelons, the new cultivars are an excellent
source of lycopene, a powerful antioxidant associated with a lower incidence of
some cancers. They're also rich in vitamin A and potassium.
Details:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2007/070719.htm
Scientific contact:
Angela
R. Davis, (580) 889-7395, extension 263; USDA-ARS
South
Central Agricultural Research Laboratory, Lane, Oka.
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Like hot habaneros? Try our new
TigerPaw-NR!
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The super-hot, bright orange TigerPaw-NR habanero
pepper offers extreme pungency for pepper aficionados, plus nematode resistance
that will make it a hit with growers and home gardeners. Agricultural Research
Service (ARS) scientists Richard L. Fery and Judy A. Thies put the pepper
through three years of greenhouse and field tests before determining, in 2006,
that it was ready for commercial fields and backyard gardens. The firm, shiny
pepper gets its name from its tiger-paw-like appearance. Its "NR"
initials stand for "nematode resistant," a prized trait. The pepper
is the first commercial habanero pepper resistant to attack by microscopic,
soil-dwelling worms known as root-knot nematodes, according to the scientists.
Details:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2007/070702.htm
Scientific contact:
Richard
L. Fery, (843) 402-5300, extension 530; USDA-ARS
U.S.
Vegetable Laboratory, Charleston, S.C.
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GreenPack-DG southernpeas, harvested dry (upper
portion); later, plumped, blanched and ready for sale as a frozen product.
Adapted from photo courtesy R. Merle Shepard, Clemson University.
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Two new varieties of southernpeasWhipperSnapper
and GreenPack-DGboast attractive colors, pleasing textures and flavors,
plus nutrients like protein and folate, a B vitamin. Agricultural Research
Service (ARS) scientist Richard L. Fery co-developed these superior
southernpeas. Both southernpeas were offered to seed producers and researchers
for the first time in 2006, after years of laboratory, greenhouse and field
tests. GreenPack-DG is the only pink-eyed southernpea that has two genes for
greenness, not just one. Its "DG" initials stand for "double
green." WhipperSnapper can be picked when the pods are still immature,
tender and edible, then sold as fresh snaps. The pods also can be left on the
vine until ready to sell with full-sized peas either within the pods, or
shelled.
Details:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2007/070718.htm
Scientific contact:
Richard
L. Fery, (834) 402-5300, extension 530, USDA-ARS
U.S.
Vegetable Laboratory, Charleston, S.C.
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All-natural, all-fruit bars, made with an
ARS-developed technology, feature cherries, apples and other fruit.
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Flavorful, all-fruit snack bars, made from organically
grown apples and berries, stay moist and chewy for up to 24 months, without the
need for artificial preservatives. That's thanks to an innovative process
developed by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists in Albany, Calif.
The organic bars are marketed under the Bear Fruit Bar brand by Mountain
Organic Foods LLC of Hood River, Ore. The company holds a license from ARS to
use the patented technology. ARS food technologist Tara H. McHugh worked with
agricultural engineer Charles C. Huxsoll, now retired from ARS, to perfect a
technique for processing fruits and vegetables into convenient, all-natural
bars that can be enjoyed year-round, not just when these highly perishable
foods are in season.
Details:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2007/070917.htm
Scientific contact:
Tara H.
McHugh, (510) 559-5864, USDA-ARS
Western
Regional Research Center, Albany, Calif.
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