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Mathematical modelling of lipid bioaccessibility in almond seeds
Author(s) -
Ellis Peter R,
Picout David R,
Wickham Martin SJ,
Mandalari Giusy,
Rich Gillian T,
Faulks Richard M,
Lapsley Karen
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.21.5.a119-c
Subject(s) - cotyledon , chemistry , food science , nutrient , digestion (alchemy) , lipid droplet , biology , botany , biochemistry , chromatography , organic chemistry
Studies have reported that in healthy humans consuming diets rich in almonds, a significant proportion of lipid material in almond seeds remains undigested. However, the amount of lipid potentially available for digestion has not been quantified. To determine lipid release (i.e. bioaccessibility) from a complex food matrix, an understanding of the food microstructure and its physical changes during mastication and processing is required. A mathematical model was developed to predict lipid release from almond seed tissue. This was achieved by obtaining information on the proportion of fractured almond cells during fragmentation and on the characteristics of individual cotyledon cells (e.g. shape, volume and particle size). The data obtained from the mathematical equation provided a good estimation of lipid bioaccessibility. Our results are in good agreement with experimental data obtained on a range of geometrically defined samples of almond tissue (e.g. cubes of different sizes). Data from parallel studies performed in vitro and in vivo appear to correlate well with our model for predicting lipid release. The use of this model could be expanded to investigate the bioaccessibility of other nutrients and phytochemicals in almonds and other plant tissues. The work was funded by the Almond Board of California.