Department of Food Science University of Milan- Italy

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Department of Food Science University of Milan-
Italy
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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN
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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN
DISTAM (Department of Food Science and
Microbiology) was established in 1985 within the
Faculty of Agriculture of the University of
Milan, in response to the growing demand of
research and teaching in the field of food
sciences.
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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN
OUR MISSION to implement education and research
in order to provide a safe, nutritious, and
affordable food supply that enhances human
health.
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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN

• THE STAFF is composed of 54 professors and
  researchers, 32 technicians and 11 administrative
  employees.
• The experience of the academic staff covers many
  aspects related to food science and applied
  microbiology.

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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN
TEACHING ACTIVITIES

The 54 DISTAM teaching personnel contributes to
several graduation courses of the Faculty of
Agriculture,
1st LEVEL GRADUATION Food Science Technology,
Viticulture and Oenology, Biotechnology, Science
of Nutrition.
2nd LEVEL GRADUATION Food Science
Technology, Biotechnology, Quality and Safety of
food.
PHD in Food Biotechnology
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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN
Beside a Master program in Food Quality Assurance
and a PhD course in Food Biotechnology,
continuing education programmes are organised by
DISTAM for industry technicians and managers.
Exchanges of students and young researchers are
now increasing with the support of the ERASMUS
and TEMPUS programmes of the European Community
and as a result of the connections between DISTAM
and research centres abroad.
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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN
FACILITIES The research groups are supported by
the normal facilities of chemical and biochemical
research laboratories, and specialised equipment
including electron microscopes, electro focusing
separators, capillary electrophoresis, ATP
detectors, electrochemical devices, sensors
biosensors, electronic noses, microcalorimeters,
circular dichroism, spectrophotomers,
etc. Facilities on site include a sensory
evaluation laboratory and a food processing hall
with small plant equipment.
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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN
THE DISTAM LIBRARY counts about 10,000 volumes
and 200 periodicals. It is one of the largest
Italian libraries devoted to Food Science and
Technology.
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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN
RESEARCH
DISTAM research activities include National
Projects (Nat. Council of Res.,CNR, Ministry of
Agriculture, MURST), and collaborations with
private companies, and local institutions.
Several DISTAM researchers have joined European
research programs in agriculture, food science
and biotechnology.
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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN

• RESEARCH
• About 150 papers are published yearly by DISTAM
  researchers in International Scientific Journals.
  Research is centred in four main areas
• Food Technology
• Food Chemistry and Quality Assurance
• Nutrition
• Microbiology

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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN
FOOD TECHNOLOGY Fundamentals and unit
operations - Heat and mass transfer phenomena
in air drying, osmo-dehydration, baking,
microwave heating - Modelling of processing
operation Wine technology -   Fermentation by
immobilized yests -   Effect of phenolics on
yeast activity -   Stabilization by gamma
radiation and wine filtration New formulated
products -   Gluten-free bakery
products -   Prebiotic and pobiotic functional
foods -   Edible coatings from food
biopolymers -   Low allergenic fruit-based
foods -   Recovery of antioxidants from olive oil
and tomato derivatives Packaging and shelf-life
studies -   New materials -   New packaging
technologies -   Food packaging-materials
interactions - Time/temperature tolerances
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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN
FOOD CHEMISTRY AND QUALITY ASSURANCE   -
Developments of methods for food characterization
and authentication -   Quality attribute of
foods by nondestructive testing electronic nose
and tongue -   Laboratory accreditation and
quality assurance of analytical data -   Food
control by modern and non-destructive analytical
methods -   Sensory analysis sensory
characteristics of foods from different
formulations and process variables -  
Physico-chemical analysis phase transition in
starch-based products, protein denaturation,
kinetic parameterisation, water activity -
Rheological analysis instrumental texture
attributes, viscoelastic and viscous flow
properties of foods.
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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN

• NUTRITION
• Evaluation of nutritional status of groups of at
  risk population (children, elderly people)
• Effects of industrial processing on the
  nutritional quality of food products
• Study of bioavailability of vitamins and
  minerals in vitro (animal models) and in vivo
  (human studies)
• Characterization of antioxidant capacity of foods
  and investigation of their role in the protection
  from oxidative stress in in vivo intervention
  studies.
• Analysis and development of biomarkers of
  oxidative stress (e.g. DNA damage, lipid damage)
  by means of innovative analytical techniques.
• Study of the metabolism of several nutrients and
  non nutrients (e.g. aminoacids, carbohydrates,
  phenolic compounds)
• Study of eating behaviour and evaluation of the
  satiating efficiency of foods

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DISTAM - UNIVERSITY OF MILAN
MICROBIOLOGY Quality assurance and certification
in food production -   Microbial risk and
HACCP -   Microbial markers for
safety -   Molecular methods for ingredients from
OGM sources identification -   Production
extraction and characterization of
enzymes Biosafety, Traceability and
Biotechnology -  Fate of ingested food DNA in
herbivorous animals and relevance for food
microbiology - Tracing food ingredients in the
food chain The main aim is the improvement and
implementation -  Development of food-grade
recombinant lactic acid bacteria (LAB)
Agricultural MicrobiologyFertility and
biocontrol - Characterization of plant growth
promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) -   Development
of safe biocontrol strains with polyvalent
activity Environmental Microbiology
Bioremediation and Biorestoration -  Response of
microbial communities during bioremediation of
polluted environments -  Study of the
contribute of microorganisms in artworks
deterioration and restoration -  Characterizatio
n of the microflora thriving in extreme
environments
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Prof. Saverio Mannino
RESEARCH ACTIVITIES

• Recent research interests
• Development of fast and reliable methods for food
  quality control based on the modern analytical
  techniques
• Development of sensor array ( electronic nose
  and electronic tongue) for
• Shelf life prediction
• Characterization of changes during food cooking
• Characterization of POD (Protected Origin
  Denomination) food

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Prof. Saverio Mannino
OTHER ACTIVITIES
SCIENTIFIC RESPONSIBLE for the Project UNDP/OPE
CPR/84/TO