Progress 09/01/17 to 05/31/18
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience for NanoGuard's USDA-NIFA funded project "Non-Thermal Pasteurization of Tree Nuts to Reduce Microbes and Mycotoxins" (USDA-NIFA-SBIR-005943) are the U.S. almond producers, The Almond Board of California (ABC), almond exporters, almond distributors and almond consumers. The presence of mycotoxins on almonds, particularly aflatoxin, is a serious concern of almond growers and consumers. Mycotoxins are present on all tree nuts as well as peanuts and they cause detrimental health problems to humans and farm animals even at parts per billion (ppb) levels. Currently, there are no good technologies available to mitigate mycotoxin on tree nuts. Good agricultural practice is the primary intervention available to manage mycotoxins, primarily aflatoxin, contamination. The estimated value of the U.S. tree nut market is approximately 9 billion dollars. It has been estimated that the industry spends approximately $100 million annually for routine analysis and disposal of rejected lots of mycotoxin-contaminated tree nuts. The estimated public health cost for mycotoxin exposure exceeds 2 billion dollars annually. The NIFA-funded almond project (USDA-NIFA-SBIR-005943) demonstrated that NanoGuard's non?thermal pasteurization (NTP) using High Voltage Atmospheric Cold Plasma (HVACP) generated from air deactivates aflatoxin and microorganisms (bacteria, mold and fungi) on almonds. NanoGuard's Non-Thermal Pasteurization using cold plasma from air is safe, effective, cheap and environmentally friendly for reducing aflatoxin on tree nuts and peanuts, which increase their market value, reduce aflatoxin testing and management costs, and provide safer as well as higher quality products to consumers. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The USDA-NIFA almond project (USDA-NIFA-SBIR-005943) provided significant professional development opportunities for NanoGuard scientists and several summer interns from Washington University, St. Louis, MO, the University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN and Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, MO. The summer interns were engineering students who got significant exposure to HVACP technology during their internship at NanoGuard. They learned how to fabricate HVACP components, troubleshoot the HVACP system and conduct spectroscopic measurements of reactive gas species. The interns also learned techniques such as Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA), almond oil extraction, peroxide value determination of almond oil etc., which engineering students are not generally familiar with. They also had the opportunity to do project-related presentations at team meetings and develop problem solving skills. The summer interns were empowered to solve difficult HVACP-related problems on a day-to-day basis as part of their leadership development skills. Some of these interns were eager to come back and work for NanoGuard in subsequent years to pick up where they left off. Overall the almond project provided unique professional development opportunities to several summer interns as well as veteran NanoGuard scientists, which wouldn't have been possible without the NIFA grant. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?NanoGuard shared the NIFA almond project results with several commercial organizations who have vested interest in mitigating aflatoxin on tree nuts and peanuts. The Almond Board of California (ABC) was one such organization who was overly enthusiastic about the outcome of the USDA-NIFA funded almond project. The ABC has been on the lookout for good processes for reducing aflatoxin on almonds without compromising almond quality and integrity. Other commercial organizations such as 'The J. M. Smucker Company, Orrville, OH', 'ADM, Chicago, IL', 'Mars Inc., McLean, VA' etc. were also highly appreciative of the almond results and showed sincere interest in working with NanoGuard to streamline the technology for their respective uses in mitigating aflatoxin and microorganisms on tree nuts and peanuts. We continue to discuss the almond results with U.S. tree nut and peanut companies who are interested in Non-Thermal Pasteurization using High Voltage Atmospheric Plasma for mitigating aflatoxin contamination. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The areas of focus of USDA-NIFA-SBIR-005943 Phase I were: 1) establish the feasibility of NanoGuard's Non-Thermal Pasteurization using High Voltage Atmospheric Cold Plasma (HVACP) to reduce aflatoxin on almonds, 2) confirm that HVACP treatment does not compromise the quality and integrity of almonds, 3) identify critical control parameters in establishing an operating envelop for consistent aflatoxin reduction on almonds, and 4) assess the economic viability of HVACP treatment at a meaningful scale to the almond industry.NanoGuard successfully investigated all four PhaseI focus areas.All the proposed Phase I technical objectives were successfully met within the specified duration of the project. Phase I results showed that NanoGuard's HVACP technology can deliver significant aflatoxin reduction on almonds and the technology can be scaled to larger treatment volumes without restrictions.Phase I results also demonstrated that there are no limitations for treating almonds up to sixty minutes in ambient air with HVACP.In Phase I, NanoGuard identified a working HVACP operating condition for effective treatment of almonds for aflatoxin reduction.Under this operating condition HVACP treatment was found to significantly reduce aflatoxin (60% - 81%) on several 450-gram almond samples.HVACP?treated almonds showed similar oxidative stability as untreated almonds as determined using peroxide values.The fatty acid profile of almond oil extracted from HVACP-treated almonds (60-minute treatment) showed no change compared to oil extracted from untreated almonds.These results demonstrate the potential for building a larger HVACP almond treatment system that could even be portable allowing for in-plant trials at almond producers' storage facilities.Additionally, preliminary work has shown that cold plasma from air is quite effective in reducing microorganisms (>2 log10 reduction) such as bacteria, fungi, and mold.
Publications
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