Publications

Marine macroalgae are a suitable source of ingredients due to their huge diversity, availability and nutritional and chemical composition. Their high content in proteins, carbohydrates and vitamins, but also in secondary metabolites such as phenolic compounds, terpenoids or pigments, make them great candidates for industrial applications. The cosmetic industry is one of the biggest in the world and the search for new ingredients is constantly growing as the consumer trend now is going back to those traditional cosmetics with a more natural composition. Moreover, the concept of a circular economy is also gaining importance due to the unsustainable situation of the natural resources. Although macroalgae are already used in cosmetics, especially as thickening and gelling agents, they possess an unexplored potential, not only as excipients and additives but also as a source of new active ingredients. In this context, macroalgae are considered in many cases as resources still underexploited and they could even be obtained from the waste of other industrial sectors and be used for recovering active molecules. Therefore, the aim of this review is to compile information about the different macroalgae metabolites and their possible applications in the cosmetic industry, which could employ circular economy models.

Abstract Cognitive disorders, including dementia, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease, pose significant public health issues. Preventing/delaying their onset is essential as effective medical treatments are unavailable. Nuts contain bioactive compounds, including fatty acids, macronutrients such as proteins and dietary fibers, micronutrients, and polyphenols; these act synergistically preventing age‐related diseases. Epidemiological investigations have established that high nut consumption reduces cognitive impairment risk, suggesting it is useful for cognitively impaired individuals; however, clinical data on the effects of nut consumption on cognitive function are lacking. This review summarized nut consumption effects on oxidative stress, inflammatory response, and gut microbiota. Nuts reduce oxidative stress; their active substances, including glansreginin A, proanthocyanidins, quercetin, and nut oil, have significant anti‐inflammatory effects. Furthermore, they comprise complex mixtures, which synergistically induce beneficial changes in the intestinal microbial community.

Abstract Chiral plasmonic sensors have emerged as powerful tools for the enantioselective detection of biomolecules, addressing key limitations of conventional techniques such as circular dichroism (CD), chromatography, and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). In this review, we introduce a unifying framework based on physical and chemical chiral imprinting strategies to design nanostructures with tailored chiroptical activity. We explore the fabrication of both discrete and assembled plasmonic architectures through methods including top‐down lithography, DNA‐guided assembly, soft templates, and chiral molecule‐directed growth. These platforms have enabled highly sensitive chiral sensing via localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR)‐based CD, colorimetry, surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), photoluminescence (PL), and circularly polarized luminescence (CPL). We describe the underlying sensing mechanisms, detection limits, and the influence of nanostructure geometry and composition on chiral signal generation. Recent applications in biosensing, disease diagnostics, and asymmetric catalysis monitoring are also highlighted. Finally, we discuss current challenges and future directions for integrating chiral plasmonic sensors into practical analytical systems, offering a comprehensive overview of their conceptual foundations, fabrication strategies (with emphasis on chiral imprinting), and application landscape.

Nitrite and nitrate have been widely used in the preservation of meat products for the effective antimicrobial action against several pathogenic bacteria such as Clostridium botulinum, Salmonella and mesophilic bacteria. However, they can further react with secondary amines in meat products and produce noxious compounds called nitrosamines during thermal processing. N-nitrosamines are divided into volatile N-nitrosamines and non-volatile N-nitrosamines, among which volatile N-nitrosamines are a group of highly hazardous chemical carcinogens whose carcinogenicity and teratogenicity have led to widespread concern. Owing to their occurrence in daily diet, it is of great significance to suppress their formation and toxicity on human health without causing adverse effects on food flavors. In this paper, the formation mechanism and toxicity of nitrosamines are provided. Potential mitigations can be carried out from the perspectives of precursors in raw materials, processing conditions as well as exogenous additives. Moreover, promoting the degradation of nitrosamines is an effective approach. The potential health risks associated with nitrosamines are described. Different intervention substances, such as polyphenols, vitamins and various plant extracts are summarized, discussing their impact on various toxicity of nitrosamines. The purpose of this review is to provide theoretical guidance on the control of nitrosamines generation and deleterious effects, so as to promote the development of meat processing and practical production.

Despite the numerous advances in modern medicine, cancer and bacterial diseases cause the death of 10 and 11 million people globally every year, respectively. Due to the significant heterogeneity associated with carcinogenesis and the constant emergence of resistant bacterial strains caused by the misuse of antibiotics, the search for new compounds of natural origin, with bioactive properties related to tumor and bacterial diseases, is growing each year. One of the most relevant compounds found in plants are secondary metabolites, specifically phenolic compounds (PC). There is a vast literature on these molecules and their associated bioactivities, but the establishment of new trials revealing the therapeutic uses of these compounds is continually evolving. In this study, the identification and quantification of PC from three species of the Amaranthaceae family (Alternanthera sessilis (L.) R., Dicliptera chinensis (L.) Juss. and Dysphania ambrosioides (L.) Mosyakin and Clemants) were carried out. In brief, the maceration of each sample was performed in ethanol/water (80:20 v/v). Then, PC were identified in the aqueous phase by Ultra-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Diode Array Detector-Mass Spectrometry (UPLC-DAD-MS), working in negative mode. The results showed a high flavonoid content in the three species, with a 11.4–15.1 mg/g range of extract. Apigenin, luteolin and isorhamnetin derivates were the most abundant compounds. Then, the cytotoxic and antibacterial activities of the extracts were determined. Different tumoral cell lines (Caco-2, MCF-7, NCI-H460) were cultivated in the presence of the extracts, and the results revealed high growth-inhibitory concentration 50% (GI50) values, ranging from 263 ± 12 to 188 ± 14 µg/mL. In parallel, the antibacterial activity of the extracts was assessed against different Gram-positive (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Morganella morganii, Proteus mirabilis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and Gram-negative (Enterococcus faecalis, Listeria monocytogenes and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)) strains. A. sessilis showed minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of 5 mg/mL against M. morganii, as well as D. abrosioides, and MRSA strain. These results showed a significant phenolic compounds activity to be present in these three species, exhibiting a high potential for nutraceutical and pharmaceutical applications.

The scientific community has corroborated the numerous beneficial activities of fucoxanthin, such as its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer or neuroprotective effects, among others. These properties have attracted the attention of nutraceutical, cosmetic and pharmacological industries, giving rise to various possible applications. Fucoxanthin may be chemically produced, but the extraction from natural sources is considered more cost-effective, efficient and eco-friendly. Thus, identifying suitable sources of this compound and giving a general overview of efficient extraction, quantification, purification and stabilization studies is of great importance for the future production and commercialization of fucoxanthin. The scientific research showed that most of the studies are performed using conventional techniques, but non-conventional techniques begin to gain popularity in the recovery of this compound. High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC), Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and spectroscopy techniques have been employed in the quantification and identification of fucoxanthin. The further purification of extracts has been mainly accomplished using purification columns. Finally, the stability of fucoxanthin has been assessed as a free molecule, in an emulsion, or encapsulated to identify the variables that might affect its further industrial application.

Lateral flow immunoassays (LFIAs) are easy‐to‐use antigen tests that provide different signal readouts, with colorimetric readouts being the most commonly used. However, these analytical devices have relatively low sensitivity and produce semiquantitative results, limiting their diagnostic applications. Herein, we address these challenges by implementing a digital surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS)‐based LFIA for the accurate and ultrasensitive quantitative detection of SARS‐CoV‐2 nucleocapsid (N) protein. Compared with average SERS intensity measurements, the digital approach allowed to overcome fluctuations in Raman scattering signals, thereby increasing the analytical sensitivity of the assay. Our method exhibited a quantification range of the viral protein in nasal swabs from 0.001 to 10 pg mL −1 , and a limit of detection down to 1.9 aM (0.9 fg mL −1 ), improving colorimetric LFIAs and conventional‐SERS‐based LFIAs by several orders of magnitude. Importantly, this approach shows an analytical sensitivity of 0.03 TCID 50 mL −1 , which is greater than that reported by other immunoassays. In conclusion, we successfully demonstrate the robust detection and quantification of SARS‐CoV‐2N protein in nasal swabs at ultralow concentrations. The improvement in the sensitivity of LFIA by digital SERS may pave the way to translate this technology into the diagnostic arena for the ultrasensitive detection of microbes and disease biomarkers.