Research

The research activities of the Department of Food Sciences (DDA) are carried out within the framework of the structural research center FARAH (Fundamental and Applied Research for Animal and Health), more particularly in the themes: "Veterinary public health" and "Sustainable Animal Production".

The BSL2+ food processing experimental unit, in vitro gastrointestinal (SHIME) and cellular models, the chemical, microbiological and genetic analytical platforms available to the DDA make it possible to study food quality and safety in an integrated manner, their manufacturing process to their digestion.

Main research areas

Safety of the Food Chain

• Chemical risks: newly formed compounds (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), chemical contaminants (residues of veterinary medicinal products PCBs, dioxins and other persistent organic pollutants, pesticides, etc.), fatty acid oxidation products (toxic aldehydes), protein degradation products (biogenic amines including histamine)
• Biological risks: Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella, C. difficile, EHEC, Listeria monocytogenes, Clostridium botulinum, Norovirus
• Quantitative Risk Assesment of microbiological and chemical Risks

Quality, safety and shelf life of Food

• Storage ability and shelf life of food
• Bioconservation and protective flora
• Provocation tests (challenge-tests) and development of predictive models
• Organoleptic and technological qualities of meat and meat products, in relation to production and processing factors
• Alternatives to food additives (antimicrobials, antioxidants)

Functional Foods and ingredients

• Probiotics, prebiotics: polyphenols, dietary fiber, etc
• Impact on human and animal gut microbiota
• Major nutrient composition (fats and fatty acids, proteins)

Characterization of microbial ecosystems

• Development and application of molecular biology tools: metagenomics, metatranscriptomics, bioinformatics
• Food, digestive and environmental microbial ecosystems

Remarkable equipment

• BSL2+ Experimental Food Processing Unit
• Analytical and bioanalytical platform for chemical analysis of food: HPLC, GC-MS, LC-MS, ELISA, cell tests, etc.
• High throughput sequencing platforms
• BSL2+ microbiology laboratory, including for strict anaerobic microflora
• BSL2+ Molecular Biology Laboratory
• In vitro gastrointestinal models: SHIME models

Publications

• A. Clinquart / G. Daube / V. Delcenserie / C. Douny / N. Korsak / M.-L. Scippo

Farah Website