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Background and Objectives: In the production process of foods rich in carbohydrates and some other foods containing precursors of acrylamide formation, there is the possibility of acrylamide creation, which is a mutagen and carcinogen material. This study aims to introduce and optimize a new method for determining acrylamide in potato chips using xanthydrol as a derivative representative with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Materials and Methods: Important factors in the derivatization and measurement processes were optimized using the one-factor-at-a-time method. The peak areas were assumed as the GC-MS response to evaluate the extraction efficiency of acrylamide, and optimization for all tests was performed two times. Figures of merit of the proposed method were evaluated. The amount of acrylamide in four potato chips samples, obtained from the market in Tehran city, was determined using the proposed method.

Results: The optimum amounts of effective parameters, including derivatization temperature at 25^oC, derivatization time (40 min), xanthydrol volume (40 µL), extracted solvent volume (500 µL) and pH=7 were determined. The figures of merit for the proposed method were at the ideal range. The maximum and minimum amounts of acrylamide in the chip samples were also measured.

Conclusions: The performance and reliability of proposed method as a simple, efficient and rapid method for determining acrylamide in potato chip samples were demonstrated.

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Background and Objectives: The addition of plasticizers (mainly phthalates and adipates) makes plastic flexible and popular for packaging, storing and preserving food, water, and so on. The most widely used plasticizer in food contact applications is di-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) though being suspected to have carcinogenic and estrogenic properties. The aim of this study is application of magnetic solid phase extraction as new absorbent for determination of DEHP in water samples by gas chromatography (GC).

Materials and Methods: Important factors in extraction, separation and determination processes were optimized using the one-variable-at-a-time method. For optimization, all tests were performed two times. Figures of merit of the proposed method were evaluated. The amount of DEHP in some water samples was determined using the proposed method.

Results: The results showed that the obtained chromatogram of extract was free of significant interference. The preservatives’ recoveries ranged from 91.6% to 102.2%. Limit of detection and limit of quantitation were 0.1 mg kg^-1 and 0.3 µg L^-1, respectively. Concentration of DEHP in the studied samples was in the range of N.D-2.3 µg L^-1.

Conclusions: The acceptable performance and reliability of the proposed method were demonstrated. Temperature and time were fount as the most effective parameters in migration of DEHP.

Keywords: Di-ethylhexyl phthalate, Magnetic solid phase extraction, Migration, Gas chromatography

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Background and Objectives: Breast milk composition is affected by several factors such as maternal diet and body mass index. Milk fats include a major calorie content of the milk, which changes dramatically throughout the lactation. The aim of the present study was to assess breast milk fatty acid profile in overweight and obese mothers and its correlations with maternal body mass index.
Materials and Methods: Milk samples were collected from 73 healthy lactating women referring to various health centers in Mashhad. Data were collected using food frequency questionnaire to assess the maternal dietary intakes. Breast milk fatty acid profile was assessed using gas chromatography.
Results: Breast milk content of saturated fatty acids was higher in obese mothers than overweight mothers (p = 0.03) with positive correlations with maternal body mass index (r = 0.256; p = 0.037). Furthermore, breast milk monounsaturated fatty acids were negatively correlated with pre-pregnancy body mass index (r = -0.385; p = 0.003) and pre-pregnancy body weight (r = -0.276; p = 0.026). However, no significant correlations were observed between the maternal body fat mass and fat proportion with the breast milk fatty acids (p > 0.05). Moreover, no significant associations were seen between dietary saturated fatty acids, milk monounsaturated fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids, n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids with the corresponding fatty acids in breast milk (p > 0.05).
Conclusions: Based on the results, breast milk of the obese mothers included higher proportion of saturated fatty acids, while no significant differences were observed in the contents of milk monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids between the overweight and obese women. Furthermore, maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index was negatively correlated with the contents of milk monounsaturated fatty acids, while it was positively correlated with saturated fatty acids contents.

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Background and Objectives: Citrus paradisi belongs to the Rutaceae family, which is found in the north and south of Iran. The purpose of this study was to extract grapefruit essential oil (GEO) by water distillation and identify its chemical compounds with the help of a gas chromatography device connected to a mass spectrometer (GC-MS). Also, the total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), antioxidant activity and antifungal effect were investigated.
Materials and Methods: In this study, GEO was first extracted by water distillation method and its chemical compounds were identified with the help of a GC-MS. The TPC and the TFC of the essential oil were determined using Folin–Ciocalteu method and aluminum chloride colorimetry, respectively. Antioxidant activity of essential oil with 3 methods of DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) free radical inhibition, ABTS (2,2'-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)) free radical inhibition and decolorization β-carotene-linoleic acid was determined. Four different methods were used to evaluate the antifungal properties of GEO on Rhizopus stolonifer (ATCC 14037), Botrytis cinerea (ATCC 28387) and Aspergillus niger (PTCC 5010).
Results: The main compound in GEO was limonene (77.50%). The essential oil had TPC equal to 92.75 mg of gallic acid per gram and TFC equal to 61.50 mg of quercetin per gram. The antioxidant activity was of GEO against DPPH radicals (29.90 mg/mL), ABTS (26.60 mg/mL) and β-carotene oxidation (60.25%). According to the results of disk diffusion agar, Botrytis cinerea showed the largest inhibition zone (17.80 mm), while Aspergillus niger showed the smallest (13.30 mm). The minimum inhibitory concentration values ​​for Botrytis cinerea were equal to 4 mg/mL and for Aspergillus niger equal to 16 mg/mL.
Conclusions: It is suggested that more research on other pathogenic fungi and also the effect of essential oil on horticultural products should be investigated.