Bio-Fortification of fish fillets with artichoke by-product extract: impact of nutritional value, antioxidant capacity, and shelf-life. 10th Edition of Innovations in food science and human nutrition (IFHN) July 14 - 15, 2025 at Vienna, Austria Oral Communication.

The increasing demand for functional foods is driving interest in novel fortification strategies. This study proposes an effective approach for the bio-fortification of farmed sea bream fillets using a mix of bioactive compounds with antioxidant properties, in order to meet the nutritional and health needs of consumers with neurodegenerative diseases. Bio-fortification was achieved using an artichoke by-product extract obtained via ultrasound-assisted enzymatic extraction. A 1:10 (w/v) suspension of artichoke leaves and stems was treated with pectinase (50 U/g) and cellulase (30 U/g), incubated at 40°C for 8 hours, exposed to ultrasound (20 kHz, 0.4 W/mL, 20 min), filtered, and freeze-dried. Two techniques of fortification were used: vacuum immersion (VI) and spray coating combined with electroporation (SC). The effectiveness of the two approaches was assessed by evaluation of the polyphenol profiles, antioxidant capacity, shelf-life, sensory quality, and impact. Non-fortified fillets were used as control (CTR). The fortified fillets showed a significant post-cooking polyphenols’ retention rate of 65.3% and 58.7% for VI and SC, respectively. Notably, HPLCDAD analysis highlighted the prevalence in the polyphenols profiles of chlorogenic acid (1.65 ± 0.12 g-1 d.w. in VI and 1.02 ± 0.08 mg·g-1 d.w. in SC) against 0.12± 0.06 g-1 d.w. in CTR. Luteolin derivatives, cynarin and caffeic acid were also identified in the cooked fortified fillets. The antioxidant capacity was evaluated through DPPH scavenging activity reaching 42.5% ± 3.2% in VI and 38.9% ± 2.8% in SC, compared to 19.6% ± 1.5% in CTR. Shelf-life assessments indicated an extension of 4 and 3 days in VI and SC raw fillets, respectively. Sensory analysis revealed improved texture and flavor in SC cooked fillets, with an acceptability score of 7.8 ± 0.6 on a 9-point hedonic scale, making them the most preferred by consumers. These findings highlight the good impact of both fortification approaches on nutritional value, antioxidant capacity, and shelf-life of farmed sea bream fillets.