There is an increased interest in the role that some nutrients may play in preventing or ameliorating the effect of major diseases (for example, some types of cancer, cardiovascular diseases, eye disorders, among others). In this respect, the bioavailability or the proportion of an ingested nutrient that is made available (that is, delivered to the bloodstream) for its intended mode of action is more relevant than the total amount present in the original food. Disruption of the natural matrix or the microstructure created during processing may influence the release, transformation, and subsequent absorption of some nutrients in the digestive tract. Alternatively, extracts of bioactive molecules (for example, nutraceuticals) and beneficial microorganisms may be protected during their transit in the digestive system to the absorption sites by encapsulation in designed matrices. This review summarizes relevant in vivo and in vitro methods used to assess the bioavailability of some nutrients (mostly phytochemicals), types of microstructural changes imparted by processing and during food ingestion that are relevant in matrix-nutrient interactions, and their effect on the bioavailability of selected nutrients.

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Analysis of the oil-absorption process in deep-fat fried potato cylinders (frying temperatures of 155°C, 170°C, and 185°C) allowed to distinguish 3 oil fractions: structural oil (absorbed during frying), penetrated surface oil (suctioned during cooling), and surface oil. Results showed that a small amount of oil penetrates during frying because most of the oil was picked up at the end of the process, suggesting that oil uptake and water removal are not synchronous phenomena. After cooling, oil was located either on the surface of the chip or suctioned into the porous crust microstructure, with an inverse relationship between them for increasing frying times.

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Freezing is the process of ice crystallization from supercooled water. Ice crystal morphology plays an important role in the textural and physical properties of frozen and frozen-thawed foods and in processes such as freeze drying, freeze concentration, and freeze texturization. Size and location of ice crystals are key in the quality of thawed tissue products. In ice cream, smaller ice crystals are preferred because large crystals results in an icy texture. In freeze drying, ice morphology influences the rate of sublimation and several morphological characteristics of the freeze-dried matrix as well as the biological activity of components (e.g., in pharmaceuticals). In freeze concentration, ice morphology influences the efficiency of separation of ice crystals from the concentrated solution. The cooling rate has been the most common variable controlling ice morphology in frozen and partly frozen systems. However, several new approaches show promise in controlling nucleation (consequently, ice morphology), among them are the use of ice nucleation agents, antifreeze proteins, ultrasound, and high pressure. This paper summarizes the fundamentals of freezing, methods of observation and measurement of ice morphology, and the role of ice morphology in technological applications.