Cleaning the Label of Cured Meat; Effect of the Replacement of Nitrates/Nitrites on Nutrients Bioaccessibility, Peptides Formation, and Cellular Toxicity of In Vitro Digested Salami

Abstract

Curing salts composed of mixtures of nitrates and nitrites are preservatives widely used in processed meats. Despite many desirable technological effects, their use in meat products has been linked to methemoglobinemia and the formation of nitrosamines. Therefore, an increasing “anti-nitrite feeling” has grown among meat consumers, who search for clean label products. In this view, the use of natural compounds as alternatives represents a challenge for the meat industry. Processing (including formulation and fermentation) induces chemical or physical changes of food matrix that can modify the bioaccessibility of nutrients and the formation of peptides, impacting on the real nutritional value of food. In this study we investigated the effect of nitrate/nitrite replacement with a combination of polyphenols, ascorbate, and nitrate-reducing microbial starter cultures on the bioaccessibility of fatty acids, the hydrolysis of proteins and the release of bioactive peptides after in vitro digestion. Moreover, digested salami formulations were investigated for their impacts on cell proliferation and genotoxicity in the human intestinal cellular model (HT-29 cell line). The results indicated that a replacement of synthetic nitrates/nitrites with natural additives can represent a promising strategy to develop innovative “clean label” salamis without negatively affecting their nutritional value.

Amphibian Skin and Skin Secretion: An Exotic Source of Bioactive Peptides and Its Application

“…However, these typical bioactivities may vary after digestion due to the peptide/amino acid sequence modification of BPs. Most of the proteins are completely degraded during gastric digestion, thus generating new BPs with modified sequences [ 56 , 57 ]. Amphibian skin is mainly a tissue featuring multiple functions including respiration, defense, and excretion [ 26 ].…”

“…This will generate smaller peptides with various sequences due to their bioactivities [ 57 ]. However, it was presumed that proline-containing peptides (such as CH) have a high resistance to hydrolysis by the digestive enzymes [ 56 ].…”

N‐Nitrosamines: a potential hazard in processed meat products

“…17 Clean-label products are created without compromising their nutritional value by substituting natural additives for synthetic nitrites-nitrates. 89,90 Another potential and innovative approach seems to be to add natural antioxidants and/or ascorbate from plants to processed meat products. 89 In a sausage production application made in this direction, it is seen that when the amount of additional ascorbic acid (500 ppm or 1000 ppm) grows, the development of NMEA, NDEA, NPYR, NPIP, and NDBA declines even more.…”

Mānuka Oil vs. Rosemary Oil: Antimicrobial Efficacies in Wagyu and Commercial Beef against Selected Pathogenic Microbes

“…These products require the addition of antimicrobials or preservatives to prevent the growth of food pathogenic and spoilage bacteria. Chemical preservatives like sodium/potassium nitrate and nitrites have long been used in raw and processed meats to alleviate lipid oxidation and pathogenic and spoilage microbes’ growth [ 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ]. These are added to processed meats such as ham, bacon, raw meats, and sausages (uncooked raw, semi-smoked, frankfurter, boiled-type, liver pâtě, and mortadella) to prevent the growth of Clostridium botulinum and other pathogenic microbes [ 10 ].…”

“…In addition, nitrates/nitrites retard the spoilage oxidative reactions and ameliorate the colour and flavour of meat products. However, besides the desirable effects, the consumption of nitrates/nitrites can form endogenous N-nitrosamine, a few of which have been reported as carcinogenic [ 8 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ]. Hence, driving the need to use preservatives of natural or plant-based origin in meat products.…”