Understanding oxidation processes in foods - Oxidation in Foods and Beverages and Antioxidant Applications - page 7

Type of protection/
protectants

Evolutionary step Functions Food protection

Physical barriers Compartmentation in early

life forms

Hampering access to oxygen Encapsulation techniques

Packaging systems

Carotenoids Appearance of

photosynthetic organisms
and development of vision

Quenching of electronically excited
states, scavenging of radicals

Light absorption (inner filter effects)
Singlet oxygen quenching
Synergistic radical scavenging

Iodide Protection of (light exposed)

marine life

Scavenging of ROS including ozone
and singlet oxygen through iodide/
iodine cycling

To be explored

Siderophores, proteins Acquisition and storage of

iron and other minerals
essential for aerobic life

Chelating iron(II)/iron(III) for tuning of
redox-potentials for electron transport,
iron homeostatis

Prevention of radical formation by
chelation of transition metal ions

Enzymes
(oxidoreductases)

Oxygen activation and
deactivation in aerobic life
forms, metabolic feed back
systems

Controlling redox potentials in tissue,
defence against infections, specific
deactivation of ROS and NOS

Oxygen depletion, scavenging of
superoxide and peroxides

Polyphenols Development of allelopathy,

surface protection of plants

Repairing plant tissue through oxidative
polymerization (enzymatic), metal
binding, radical scavenging, quenching
of excited states

Addition of botanicals or their extracts
to processed foods and beverages for
multifunctional protection

Tocopherols/tocotrienols Appearance of plant seeds

with longevity

Radical scavenging in lipophilic
compartments, chain-breaking in lipid
autoxidation

Enhancement of oxidative stability of
meat, milk and other animal based food
items through change in animal feed
Antioxidant supplementation to food

Uric acid, ascorbic acid,
glutathione

Diversification in nitrogen
excretion and herbivore/
omnivorous differentiation

Redox communication in hydrophilic
compartments, protein function
adjustment

Addition for oxygen depletion and
tocopherol regeneration