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Seed processing technologies are essential for seed safety and functionality through protection of physicochemical quality, pathogen inactivation, aflatoxin detoxification and alleviation of mutagenicity. Design of a pilot‐scale unit of pulsed electric fields (PEF) to treat sesame seeds with respect to quality parameters, Aspergillus parasiticus inactivation and aflatoxin reduction as well as alleviation of aflatoxin mutagenicity were prompted in this study. PEF energy ranged from 0.97 to 17.28 J achieved maximum reductions of peroxide value and acidity number of 67.4 and 85.7%, respectively, and did not change color L*, a*, b* and hue values. A 60% reduction of A. parasiticus counts occurred at the maximum PEF energy. Aflatoxins G1, G2, B1, and B2 contents decreased by 94.7, 92.7, 86.9, and 98.7%, respectively. Except for the samples treated by 2.16 J with 100 μg/plate and by 6.80 J with 10 μg/plate, PEF treatment provided elimination of aflatoxin mutagenity. It is concluded that PEF treatment can be used to treat sesame seeds with preservation of physicochemical properties, inactivation of A. parasiticus and decomposition of aflatoxins with reduced mutagenicity.

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Chemicals used for seed treatments help to increase the agricultural production by preventing pests and pathogens but also cause environmental and health problems. Thus, environmentally-friendly technologies need to be developed for a seed treatment that inactivates surface microflora and improves seed vigor. One such pulsed electric field (PEF) treatment applied to cucumber seeds in the range of 1.07-17.28 Joule (J) significantly enhanced a mean germination rate (MGR) by up to 9%, a normal seedling rate by 25.73%, and a resistance to 100 and 200 mM salt stresses by 96% and 91.67%, respectively, with a stronger and faster growth of roots and seedlings. PEF treatment provided 3.34 and 3.22 log-reductions in the surface microflora of total mold and yeast and total aerobic mesophilic bacteria, respectively. The electrical conductivity (EC) values of the control samples increased over time, from 4 to 24 h. Those of the PEF-treated samples after 4, 12, and 24th hours were also more affected by the measurement time not by the PEF treatment. The joint optimization of 18 responses based on the best-fit Gaussian process model pointed to 19.78 s and 17.28 J as the optimal settings. The PEF treatment appeared to improve seed germination ability and stress resistance with the adequate inactivation of surface microflora.

Development of edible film from potato industry effluent having antimicrobial properties against Salmonella enteritidis and Escherichia coli O157:H7 by addition of Citrus sinensis volatile oil (VO), and changes of its textural properties under high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) are investigated. The optimum operational conditions are determined as 500 MPa pressure, 36.97 µL VO, and 15 min processing time with the minimum force value of 372.33 × g. Textural properties are also modeled through empirical modeling, best fit Box‐Behnken design, and artificial neuron network. Inhibition zones for Salmonella enteritidis and E. coli O157:H7 at the optimum HHP conditions are 1.50 ± 0.11 and 2.18 ± 0.07 cm, respectively. Textural properties of force and elongation at break of the HHP‐processed films range from 2.27 ± 0.52 to 5.23 ± 0.38 N, and from 8.57 ± 1.31 to 13.36 ± 1.36 mm, respectively. Thermal transition of the edible film is observed at 87.42 °C for 7.36 min. Addition of C. sinensis VO improves the antimicrobial properties, whereas HHP improves the textural properties of the film. It is suggested that the developed film has potential to be used as an edible food packaging material.