Albert sebastia duque
Verified @gmail.com
Scopus Publications
- Multi-Mycotoxin Occurrence and Health Risk Assessment in Early Post-Harvest Durum Wheat, Barley, and Maize from Tunisia
Khouloud Ben Hassouna, Jalila Ben Salah-Abbès, Samir Abbès, Ferjeni Zouidi, Mourad Jridi, Albert Sebastià, Noelia Pallarés, Houda Berrada
Toxins, 2026
The contamination of cereals by mycotoxins represents a major concern due to their harmful effects on human health and food quality. The current study investigated the occurrence of major mycotoxins (AFB1, AFB2, AFG1, AFG2, OTA, ENA, ENA1, ENB, and ENB1) in 158 raw cereal samples (durum wheat, barley, and maize) collected from two Tunisian regions: Beja (continental region) and Mahdia (coastal region). Mycotoxins were extracted using the QuEChERS method and quantified by UHPLC–MS/MS. Several mycotoxins were detected at high levels across all the cereals. In the Beja region, durum wheat was contaminated with AFB1, AFG1, ENA, ENA1, ENB, and ENB1, with ENB being the most frequent (70%). Mahdia durum wheat was contaminated only with ENA, ENA1, ENB, and ENB1, with ENB1 being the most prevalent (22.6%). Barley from both regions was contaminated only with ENs. The ENB was the most frequent (Beja 66%, Mahdia 28.6%). Maize from Beja was contaminated by OTA and ENs, with ENA1 being the most frequent (22.5%), while maize from Mahdia was contaminated by AFB1, AFB2, AFG2, and ENs (AFB1 was the most frequent, 35%). All wheat samples contaminated with AFG1 (6.55%) exceeded the European Union maximum limit for AFs in cereals (4 µg/kg). Similarly, maize samples contaminated with AFB1 (17.5%), AFB2 (10%), and AFG2 (2.5%) exceeded the EU maximum limit for aflatoxins in maize (10 µg/kg). Additionally, maize samples contaminated with OTA (5%) exceeded the EU maximum limit for OTA in unprocessed cereals (5 µg/kg). The co-occurrence of multiple mycotoxins was observed in all cereal types, with up to six different mycotoxins detected in a single sample. Dietary risk assessment revealed high EDIs of AFB1, AFG1, and ENs through the consumption of wheat and barley by Tunisian adults. The calculated MOE values for AFB1 and AFG1 in wheat were below 10,000 (MOE = 1190 for AFB1 and 2.5 for AFG1), suggesting a potential health concern associated with dietary exposure. Despite this potential risk, AFB1 and AFG1 were detected in only 3% and 7% of the analyzed samples, respectively. These results highlight the need for regular monitoring and the establishment of regulations to control mycotoxins in Tunisian cereals. - Enhancing mineral, protein, and bioactive peptides recovery and selectivity via pulsed electric field (PEF)-assisted fermentation of supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) defatted spirulina and ultrafiltration
Yixuan Liu, Noelia Pallarés, Emilia Ferrer, Pedro V. Martínez-Culebras, Patricia Roig, Juan Manuel Castagnini, Albert Sebastià, Houda Berrada, Francisco J. Barba
Food Bioscience, 2026 - Pulsed electric fields selectivity in peel phenolics from Actinidia deliciosa vs. Opuntia ficus-indica: Triple TOF-LC-MS/MS profiling for valorization
Mara Calleja-Gómez, Albert Sebastià, José M. Lorenzo, Mirian Pateiro, Noelia Pallarés
Food Bioscience, 2026 - How suitable is a Tenebrio molitor oil produced via supercritical CO2 for food purposes? Assessment of nutritional indicators, process scale-up, and sustainability
Manuel Salgado-Ramos, Albert Sebastià, Gustavo Durazo, Noelia Pallarés, Victoria Capilla, Miriam Benítez, José V. Ros-Lis, Francisco J. Barba
Innovative Food Science and Emerging Technologies, 2026
In the searching for alternative, more sustainable ingredients for food sector, this study tackled the production of an oil derived from Tenebrio molitor ( TM ) by means of supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO 2 ) technology. Kinetic curves recorded by bench scale (BS) experiments assessed parameters as particle size distribution or the use of modifiers solvents (ethanol) in the supercritical phase, revealing a maximum degree of defatting above 90 %. While operations at pilot plant (up to 5.5 kg of TM ) still afforded a distinguished yield (84 % defatting) by ruling out the use of doping agents. The produced oil at this level of operation showed a noticeable proportion of unsaturated fat (41 % oleic acid and 30 % linoleic acid) and a more than acceptable freshness being evaluated through peroxide index (15 meq O 2 /kg oil) or acidity degree (2 %), which suggests the applicability of this oil as a novel food. To test the real suitability of this methodology, an environmental impact evaluation was conducted on pilot scale processes. Green chemistry performance metrics (GCPMs) revealed low environmental factor (EF, 0.19), high process mass productivity (PMP, 84.21 %) and eco-scale (83.10). Further, a Life-cycle Assessment (LCA) displayed an impact reduction in categories such as stratospheric ozone depletion, marine and freshwater eutrophication, and land use compared to the production of 1 kg of palm and soybean oil. Overall, the use of advanced technologies for process intensification, together with the process balance and sustainability, as well as the quality of the recovered product support the adoption of this protocol for its implementation in the food sector. - Combined Sonication and Pulsed Electric Field for Food Processing - a State of the Art Review
Pengyun Liu, Christian Cravotto, Albert Sebastià, Francisco J. Barba, Giancarlo Cravotto
Food Reviews International, 2026 - Chemical characterization and safety assessment of black truffle (tuber melanosporum) leftovers extracts obtained through non-conventional extraction techniques
Albert Sebastià, Katarzyna Dawidowicz, Noelia Pallarés, Emilia Ferrer, Juan Manuel Castagnini, Francisco J. Martí-Quijal, Manuel Salgado-Ramos
Food Chemistry, 2025
Black truffle (Tuber melanosporum) (BT) is a gourmet fungus rich in bioactive compounds. Its high price in food market often causes that most of the harvest has to be wasted regardless of minor flaws or harms in the raw BT, leading to an important amount of underutilized leftovers. This work tackles a chemical upcycling of BT leftovers (BTL) and their possible use as alternative food ingredient or nutraceuticals. This study provides a biochemical characterization of BTL extracts from green methods: supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) and pressurized liquid extraction (PLE). Both extracts showed low heavy metal content and no cytotoxicity in Caco-2 cells. PLE was more effective for extracting linoleic and oleic acids and a broad variety of phenolics. In contrast, SFE enhanced the recovery of arachidic acid and was highly selective for flavonoids. These findings show BTL's potential for food and nutraceuticals, emphasizing the value of sustainable extraction processes. • SFE and PLE are useful tools to extracts polyphenols and fatty acids from truffle. • Both methods content similar mineral content and reduce heavy metal concentration. • Truffle extracts showed no cytotoxicity in CaCo-2 cells. • Findings support sustainable extraction for food applications. - Combination of pulsed electric fields and ultrasounds technologies for mycotoxins mitigation in grape juice
Albert Sebastià, Mara Calleja-Gómez, Noelia Pallarés, Juan Manuel Castagnini, Emilia Ferrer, Houda Berrada
Applied Food Research, 2025
• PEF + USN treatment reduces enniatins levels up to 48% for ENNB1 and 36% for ENNB. • PEF + USN results in OTA and AFB2 reduction up to 21% and 36%, respectively. • The combination of PEF and USN shows potential for mycotoxin mitigation in juices. Grape juice has increased market share due to its rich phenolic compounds, linked to preventive effects against cardiovascular diseases and cancer. However, concerns arise as studies report the presence of mycotoxins in juices, posing significant health risks. Pulsed electric fields (PEF) and ultrasounds (USN) have been explored as an eco-friendly tool for contaminants mitigation. The present study explores the effect of the sequential combination (PEF + USN) for mycotoxins mitigation in grape juice. For this, grape juice was elaborated and spiked individually with Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), Aflatoxin B2 (AFB2), Ochratoxin A (OTA), Enniatin B (ENNB), and Enniatin B1 (ENNB1) at a concentration of 100 µg/L. Then, mycotoxins were extracted from treated samples and non-treated controls employing Dispersive Liquid-Liquid Microextraction (DLLME) and determined by Liquid Chromatography couple to mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The reductions obtained were up to 48% for ENNB1, 36% for ENNB, 21% for OTA, and 15% for both of AFB1 and AFB2. Thus, the combination of PEF + USN showed interesting potential to be applied for mycotoxins mitigation. - Acrylamide content in popcorn from Spanish market: Risk assessment
Albert Sebastià, Carmen Fernández-Matarredona, Juan Manuel Castagnini, Francisco J. Barba, Houda Berrada, Juan Carlos Moltó, Olga Pardo, Francesc A. Esteve-Turrillas, Emilia Ferrer
Food and Chemical Toxicology, 2025 - Development of a greener and sustainable method to determine acrylamide in corn products by LC-MS/MS: Evaluation of levels in corn-based products
Albert Sebastià, Francesc Ramon-Mascarell, Carmen Fernández-Matarredona, Francisco J. Barba, Houda Berrada, Olga Pardo, Francesc A. Esteve-Turrillas, Emilia Ferrer
Food Chemistry, 2024
Acrylamide (AA) is produced through the reaction between sugars and amino acids present in starchy foods cooked at high temperature. It is classified as probably carcinogenic to humans. In 2019, the European Commission reported a list of foods for monitoring the presence of AA, which includes cereal snacks. This study presents the development and validation of an analytical approach for detecting AA in popcorn and corn-based snacks. It includes solid-liquid extraction and clean-up with dispersive solid phase extraction followed by analysis through liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. The proposed method was characterized in terms of recoveries (84–105%), and precision (< 16.1%). Limits of quantification were 17 and 60 μg kg−1 for corn and popcorn, respectively. Sustainability of the methodology was evaluated using AGREEprep and BAGI, providing values of 0.43 and 65.0, respectively. Twenty-four corn-based products were analyzed, with AA levels from 219 to 418 μg kg−1. - A critical review of acrylamide green extraction and determination in food matrices: Current insights and future perspectives
Albert Sebastià, Noelia Pallarés, Luna Bridgeman, Ana Juan-García, Juan Manuel Castagnini, Emilia Ferrer, Francisco J. Barba, Houda Berrada
Trac Trends in Analytical Chemistry, 2023
Acrylamide (AA) is a process-contaminant formed during Maillard Reaction (MR) in starchy foods heated at temperatures above 120 °C. It has been classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as a probable carcinogen (2A) and genotoxic substance. Detecting AA in a reliable, rapid, cost-effective, and sustainable manner is crucial. This article reviews the most commonly used techniques for extracting and quantifying AA in various food samples, while also discussing the latest innovative techniques and future trends in AA analysis. In recent years, innovative extraction methods have been developed to improve selectivity for AA compared to traditional techniques that require Internal Standards (IS) and highly sensitive quantification methods. This is particularly important due to the complex nature of food matrices. The critical step in AA quantification lies in purifying the aqueous extract because AA is highly soluble in water and coexists with other polar compounds. Innovative solvent-free techniques offer advantages such as improved selectivity, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness. They can also reduce the need for extensive sample preparation and minimize the interference of other compounds present in the food matrices. In addition, modified QuEChERS extraction techniques have been proposed, which involve a significant reformulation of the commonly used methods. As research in this field continues to evolve, it is expected that future trends will focus on further improving the accuracy, sensitivity and sustainability of AA detection, ultimately contributing to food safety and consumer health. - Impact of Combined Processes Involving Ultrasound and Pulsed Electric Fields on ENNs, and OTA Mitigation of an Orange Juice-Milk Based Beverage
Albert Sebastià, Mara Calleja-Gómez, Noelia Pallarés, Francisco J. Barba, Houda Berrada, Emilia Ferrer
Foods, 2023 - High Pressure Processing Impact on Emerging Mycotoxins (ENNA, ENNA1, ENNB, ENNB1) Mitigation in Different Juice and Juice-Milk Matrices
Noelia Pallarés, Albert Sebastià, Vicente Martínez-Lucas, Rui Queirós, Francisco J. Barba, Houda Berrada, Emilia Ferrer
Foods, 2022 - High pressure processing impact on alternariol and aflatoxins of grape juice and fruit juice-milk based beverages
Noelia Pallarés, Albert Sebastià, Vicente Martínez-Lucas, Mario González-Angulo, Francisco J. Barba, Houda Berrada, Emilia Ferrer
Molecules, 2021
