Our aim is to characterize and understand the mechanisms that drive the fruit and vegetable qualities during processing and storage processes. We focus our research on micronutrients: secondary metabolites and vitamins. Secondary metabolism compounds and micronutrients are increasingly taken into account in the quality of processed fruits and vegetables because of their role in sensory quality and especially in consumer health (vitamins, antioxidants). For this latter aspect, it is necessary to consider not only the quantity of micronutrients in the final food but also their "bioaccessibility" in the digestive tract. Bioaccessibility will depend on the interactions between micronutrients and the matrix during its destructuration (destruction of plant tissues and cells) and its reorganization (molecular interactions in the processed product) during processing and digestion. The study of the processes begins with the raw material and its storage, and continues until the food in the digestive tract of the consumer (this last point being treated with the Team “Micronutrients : reactivity and digestion”)

The team's themes are:

-Develop methods to characterize the quality of fresh and processed fruits and vegetables, involving chemical analyses (sugars, oraganic acis, polyphenols, carotenoids, vitamins…), high-throughput methods based on infrared spectroscopie, mechanical and micromechanical methods.

-Understand and measure the behavior of micronutrients within the structures of the matrix at the tissue and cell scales, during processing (diffusion, release by destruction of the tissue structure...). Two aspects are dealt with: the stability of the micronutrients, depending on the availability of oxygen, the pH and the composition of the medium, and the matter exchanges, related to cell lysis and the diffusion of molecules in and outside the plant tissue.

-Study interactions between the micronutrients and the macromolecules of the matrix, in particular the cell wall polysaccharides (adsorption, absorption, chemical bonds...). These interactions occur when cell structures are degraded during processing. We study in particular the interactions between procyanidins and the polysaccharides constituting the plant walls.

Team staff

Marielle Bogé (T), Sylvie Bureau (E), Caroline Garcia (T), Florence Charles (AP), Barbara Gouble (E),  Carine Le Bourvellec (RD), Alexandre Leca (R), David Page (R), Njara Rakotomanomana (AP), Sylvaine Régis (E), Patrice Reling (T), Gisèle Riqueau (T), Agnès Rolland-Sabaté (E), Isabelle Souchon (RD), Line Touloumet (T)

Ph-D students and Ph-D graduate students : Clarisse Bréard (50% SporAlim), Moustapha Dieng (50% MicroNut), Justine Giroud-Argoud (contract), Emanuelle Richard (50% MicroNut), Sebastian Rincon,

Industrial group : Aurélie Cendrès (E), Thibault Soubrat (E), Ophélie Padre (contract)

National collaborations : CTCPA ; UMR Genial, Massy ; UMR MOISA, Montpellier ; ESA Angers ; GAFL ; UMR Qualisud ; UE Gotheron ; URBIA Nantes ; UMR IATE ; UMR NORT, Marseille ; UMR MEDIS et UMR UNH Clermont-Ferrand

International collaborations : Federal University of Parana, Curitiba, Brasil ; University of Coahuila, Mexico ; University of  Franceville, Gabon ; IRTA Girona, Spain; IO Skierniewice, Poland ; CRIC, Barcelona, Spain; INRAT, Tunis, Tunisia.