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Girón-Hernández, JoelCorresponding Author

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April 1, 2026
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Bioactive alginate films with Amazonian extracts: physicochemical performance and real food application in avocado preservation

Publicated to: Food Packaging and Shelf Life. 54 101735- - 2026-03-01 54(), DOI: 10.1016/j.fpsl.2026.101735

Authors:

Benlloch-Tinoco, Maria; Nunez-Ramirez, Jose Manuel; Garcia-Rincon, Paola A; Carranza, Carlos; Gentile, Piergiorgio; Giron-Hernandez, Joel
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Affiliations

Carlos III Hlth Inst, Biomed Res Networking Ctr Bioengn Biomat & Nanomed, Valencia 46022, Spain - Author
Northumbria Univ, Fac Hlth & Life Sci, Dept Appl Sci, Ellison Pl, Newcastle Upon Tyne NE1 8ST, England - Author
Univ Amazonia, Fac Ingn, Grp Invest Biotecnol & Control Calidad Alimentos, Florencia 180001, Colombia - Author
Univ Nacl Abierta & Distancia, Escuela Ciencias Agr Pecuarias & Medio Ambiente, Bogota 111511, Colombia - Author
Univ Politecn Valencia, Ctr Biomat & Tissue Engn CBIT, Valencia 46022, Spain - Author
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Abstract

Bioactive extracts from three underutilized Amazonian fruits, Euterpe oleracea (10-50 g & centerdot;100 g(-1) alginate), Myrciaria dubia (10-50 g & centerdot;100 g(-1) alginate), and Theobroma bicolor (10-50 g & centerdot;100 g(-1) alginate), were incorporated into alginate matrices (2% w/v) to produce biodegradable films with enhanced functionality for active food packaging. Extracts were characterized by proximate composition, dietary fiber and metabolomic profiles, revealing distinct phytochemical fingerprints. The composite films displayed extract- and concentration- dependent changes in thickness (0.11-0.32 mm), solubility (38.7-195.3 mim), opacity (1.06-8.76) and color (e.g., L* 23.51-91.37). Barrier performance of the films improved at all concentrations with E. oleracea, but mechanical strength was compromised at 50 g extract & centerdot;100 g(-1) alginate (e.g., 5.59 MPa for Eo50Alg and 8.67 MPa for Eo25Alg). Both M. dubia and T. bicolor showed plasticizing effects (10-50 g extract & centerdot;100 g(-1) alginate), while improving barrier properties at low concentrations (10 g extract & centerdot;100 g(-1) alginate). Additionally, M. dubia imparted antimicrobial activity on Gram-positive bacteria (50 g extract & centerdot;100 g(-1) alginate). FTIR confirmed crosslinking between alginate and all fruit extracts, predominantly as phenolic-alginate intermolecular hydrogen bonds. TGA indicated improved thermal stability, particularly for E. oleracea films (residual mass similar to 30%). In a real-food model using avocado pulp, all composite films delayed oxidative degradation (up to 80% with E. oleracea), improved pigment retention (T. bicolor) compared to neat alginate films (p < 0.05). Our results demonstrated the potential of Amazonian fruits as a clean source of functional additives for the formulation of active bioplastics that preserve the quality of high-value foods over storage.
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Keywords

Antimicrobial activityBarrier propertiesLipid oxidationMechanical propertiesMetabolomic analysisPolyphenols

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Food Packaging and Shelf Life due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2026, it was in position 6/182, thus managing to position itself as a Q1 (Primer Cuartil), in the category Food Science & Technology. Notably, the journal is positioned above the 90th percentile.

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Leadership analysis of institutional authors

This work has been carried out with international collaboration, specifically with researchers from: Colombia; United Kingdom.

There is a significant leadership presence as some of the institution’s authors appear as the first or last signer, detailed as follows: Last Author (Girón Hernández, Lunier Joel).

the author responsible for correspondence tasks has been Girón Hernández, Lunier Joel.

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Awards linked to the item

This work was supported by grant BB/X51228X/1 funded by BBSRC, the Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnologia e Innovacion, Colombia (project BPIN 2021000100065) and Marie Curie programme (HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01-01 n. 101206930-SMartGut Grant) . The authors particularly acknowledge the funding provided by Colombia, which sponsored the research secondment of J. Nunez, C. Carranza and P. Garcia, at Northumbria University in the United Kingdom.
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