16-04-2024
Ana Rita Duarte, researcher at NOVA FCT's Associated Laboratory for Green Chemistry (LAQV), has been awarded the ERC (European Research Council) Proof of Concept Grant 2023, worth 150,000 euros, for the research project "ImproVita - Improve the shelf life of perishable goods through stabilisation of vitamins". The main aim of the project is to help improve the shelf life of perishable goods through the stabilisation of vitamins, using an innovative technology that aims to increase antioxidant activity and prevent fruit from oxidising for up to 48 hours when exposed to air.
"We know that the food processing industries face high pressure to increase the shelf life of products and reduce the tonnes of waste generated every year, while consumers are increasingly conscious in the choices they make. Vitamins, also known as antioxidants, are the most common group of chemical compounds used to preserve the freshness of food. This project aims to prevent the premature degradation of antioxidants by using deep eutectic systems (DES) to increase the shelf life of these compounds," explains researcher Ana Rita Duarte.
The project team has already demonstrated that using this technology increases antioxidant activity for up to five days and prevents fruit oxidation for up to 48 hours, unlike conventional methods which only prevent food oxidation for a couple of hours.
"In this proof of concept, the team aims to validate the product in terms of its technical characteristics, but also to validate the market and assess the commercial potential of our solution," comments Ana Rita Duarte.
Antioxidants are compounds capable of inhibiting oxidation, which is a chemical reaction that leads to the production of free radicals that can damage cells. Antioxidants, such as vitamins (vitamin C - ascorbic acid or vitamin E - tocopherol), stop these chain reactions. For this reason, many food supplements and cosmetics are made up of these vitamins.
The proof of concept grant announced today is awarded to a researcher who has already been honoured with two ERC grants. In 2017, Ana Rita Duarte had already won an ERC Consolidator Grant for her work "Des.solve - When solids become liquids: natural deep eutectic solvents for chemical process engineering". Later, in 2022, she received a grant worth 150,000 euros to develop the project "CryoDES - Nature-inspired Cryopreservation Systems using Natural Deep Eutectic Systems".
In addition, the proof of concept grant from the European Research Council also means that the funding should be used to move from theory to practice: realising the viability of the scientific concepts under development as well as exploring business opportunities or preparing patent applications. In this specific case, the team intends to assess the commercial potential of this new solution in the market.
In the press:
Diário das Beiras: https://www.asbeiras.pt/2023/07/ana-rita-duarte-da-universidade-nova-recebe-bolsa-europeia-para-investigacao/
Rádio Comercial: https://radiocomercial.pt/noticias/140533/ana-rita-duarte-da-universidade-nova-recebe-bolsa-europeia-para-investigacao
Notícias ao Minuto: https://www.noticiasaominuto.com/pais/2369458/docente-da-universidade-nova-recebe-bolsa-europeia-para-investigacao
Green Savers: https://greensavers.sapo.pt/estabilizar-vitaminas-e-evitar-oxidacao-da-fruta-ate-48h/
Bom Dia: https://bomdia.eu/portuguesa-recebe-bolsa-europeia-para-investigacao/
Ipress Journal: https://www.ipressjournal.pt/investigadora-da-nova-fct-recebe-bolsa-erc/
