NEW DIAGNOSTIC AND THERAPEUTIC TOOLS

In this thematic line one of the main activities is related with Toxoplasma gondii: how to detect environmental T. gondii oocists and accidental contamination on vegetables and fruits? In consequence, the Gene and Cloning expression of recombinant antigens was re-oriented to a recombinant antigen from Toxoplasma gondii oocyst wall protein, TgOWP1, Sequence ID: XM_002367673.2, and now designed as rTgOWP1-f. The consistency of our results strongly supports the design of a new laboratorial test, based on Magnetic Immunosepatarion and immunofluorescence to detect environmental T. gondii oocists.

One of the topics of this thematic line is natural molecules research. The involvement in this topic on research to strengthen the knowledge about the biological properties and mechanisms of action of natural molecules such as phenolics and phlorotannins have been carried out in food plants (e.g. quinoa, psyllium, persimmon), foods by-products (e.g. pomegranate and grape by-products) and edible algae (e.g. Gracilaria spp.). Their application in food packaging, in the form of bioactive extracts, has also been studied to minimize the direct addition of synthetic additives to foods. Natural extracts have been incorporated in biodegradable films (e.g. whey protein films) in order to obtain active films with antioxidant and/or antimicrobial capacity allowing to extend food shelf life and minimize food loss. Biodegradable polymers were also reinforced with nanocomposites (e.g. montmorillonite) to improve their mechanical, barrier and optical properties.