Kristina Habschied

The hectic pace of modern life often leads to quick solutions, both in lifestyle and the choice of food we consume. The importance of the gut microbiome and its balance is being increasingly researched, with the prebiotic concept itself becoming a topic of scientific investigation. The aim of this paper is to analyze scientific studies on the understanding of prebiotics conducted between 2019 and 2024 in order to see what new knowledge, new sources, new ways of use, and newly established effects on certain disease states have been discovered during this period. The question that the authors are trying to answer is how specific prebiotics affect the growth and activity of selected probiotic strains in the human gut (have impact on gut microbiome) and what the implications of these interactions are. Four databases were searched: Pubmed/MEDLINE, Springerlink, Google Scholar, and Scopus. The keywords used were prebiotics, functional food, probiotics, gut microbiome, and trends. A systematic review of 30 scientific studies on the topic of prebiotics revealed significant advances in understanding and application. Research particularly indicates how prebiotics stimulate the growth of beneficial probiotic strains, such as Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, and Bifidobacterium. In addition, innovative approaches in food production, including pasta rich in prebiotic fibers, chocolate with inulin and stevia, and the use of fruit by-products, show promising results in creating “healthier” food options. Although the papers had differing objectives and research methodologies, certain similarities were found. All papers emphasized the importance of using prebiotics, although it depended on the type they come from and their impact on the gut microbiome, i.e., the stimulation of probiotic action within the gut microbiome, which consequently has benefits on health. This review serves as a springboard for further research in this exciting field, with the ultimate goal of harnessing the power of prebiotics to improve health outcomes.

Traditional meat products are commonly produced in small family businesses. However, big industries are also involved in the production of this kind of product, especially since a growing number of consumers crave the traditional taste and aromas. The popularization of original and organic products has resulted in a return to traditional production methods. Traditional meat products are produced worldwide. However, in such (domesticated) conditions there is a potential danger for mycotoxin contamination. This review aims to present the sources of mycotoxins in traditional meat products, the most common mycotoxins related to such meat products, and future prospects regarding the suppression of their occurrence. Special attention should be paid to reducing the transfer of mycotoxins via the food chain from animal feed to animals to humans (stable-to-table principle), which is also described in this review. Other sources of mycotoxins (spices, environment, etc.) should also be monitored for mycotoxins in traditional production. The importance of monitoring and regulating mycotoxins in meat products, especially in traditional meat products, is slowly being recognized by the institutions and hopefully, in the future, can deliver legally regulated limits for such products. This is especially important since meat products are available to the general population and can seriously affect human health.

Spent brewer’s yeast (SBY) is a byproduct of the brewing industry traditionally used as a feed additive, although it could have much broader applications. In this paper, a comprehensive review of valorization of SBY for the production of high-value products, new materials, and biofuels, as well as environmental application, is presented. An economic perspective is given by mirroring marketing of conventional SBY with innovative high-value products. Cascading utilization of fine chemicals, biofuels, and nutrients such as proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids released by various SBY treatments has been proposed as a means to maximize the sustainable and circular economy.

One of the main quality characteristics of cereals, especially wheat is its hardness which is closely related with grain’s vitreosity, one of the main quality indicators of a variety. Determination of vitreosity is usually done visually: namely, after the grain is cut with a commercially available grain-cutters, the cut can result in broken or crushed grains which disables the reading and hinders the precision and accuracy. Also, the moment produced from the manual force on the grain-cutter crank, needed to cut the sample of cca. 50 grains placed in the cutter is an average of 30 Nm. Due to the resistance of the grain, yank force appears. This force can cause the whole instrument to be displaced during cutting. To minimize the errors using a commercially available cutter, a new knife/blade has been implemented and tested. The blade of the new knife is turned at the inclination angle of 49° in relation to the cutting objects (grains). This design solution enables achievement of the grain “cutting”, not grain “tearing”, as observed with the existing commercial design solution. With the proposed new design solution, amount of the moment is reduced to 2.72 Nm and the yank force is completely avoided. Also, a significantly lower amount of the cutting force, on the knife blade is achieved. The results obtained with the new knife gave a better read, were more precise, and the gadget was easier to operate since it demanded lower force to cut the grains. The novelty introduced by this research provided better and more reliable insight into determining the vitreousness of grains. Providing a clearer cut and better readability, this solution goes beyond the current literature by reducing the force required for analysis and speeding up the analysis process.