Unit CHEMISTRY AND FOOD QUALITY
- Course
- Biological sciences
- Study-unit Code
- A002012
- Curriculum
- Cellulare-molecolare
- Teacher
- Federica Ianni
- Teachers
-
- Federica Ianni
- Hours
- 42 ore - Federica Ianni
- CFU
- 6
- Course Regulation
- Coorte 2024
- Offered
- 2026/27
- Learning activities
- Affine/integrativa
- Area
- Attività formative affini o integrative
- Sector
- CHIM/10
- Type of study-unit
- Opzionale (Optional)
- Type of learning activities
- Attività formativa monodisciplinare
- Language of instruction
- Italian
- Contents
- The Food Chemistry and Quality course analyzes the structure, properties, and chemical transformations of the main food components, with a focus on qualitative and nutritional aspects.
Content includes:
-Food principles and nutrients
-Reference Intake Levels for Nutrients and Energy (LARN)
-Chemical structure and composition of foods
-Water in foods and water activity
-Energy-producing macronutrients (proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates)
-Dietary fiber: structure, properties, and physiological effects
-Essential micronutrients and their properties
-Food spoilage reactions (lipid oxidation, browning)
-Laboratory techniques for food quality control (extraction, chromatographic methods, and their applications to the analysis of complex food matrices such as oil and wine). - Reference texts
- Mannina, Daglia, Ritieni - La chimica e gli alimenti, Zanichelli Editore.
Teaching material provided by the Lecturer for each topic of the course. - Educational objectives
- The Food Chemistry and Quality course aims to provide students with in-depth knowledge of the structure, properties, and transformations of food constituents. A central element of the course is the development of skills in analytical chemistry applied to food, aimed at understanding and applying the main methodologies used for the qualitative and quantitative characterization of food matrices.
At the end of the course, students will be able to:
- understand the chemical composition of foods and their nutritional implications;
- define the structure of food constituents and the potential chemical changes they may undergo;
- interpret the main chemical transformations responsible for nutrient alterations;
- apply fundamental concepts of chemical analysis of foods;
- understand analytical strategies for assessing the quality and safety of food products;
- use preliminary laboratory knowledge to design qualitative and quantitative analyses. - Prerequisites
- For a better understanding of the contents and to achieve the objectives of the course students must have knowledge of general chemistry, organic chemistry and biochemistry.
- Teaching methods
- Lectures on all topics of the course.
- Other information
- Course attendance is strongly recommended. For information on student support services (disability and/or DSA): http://www.unipg.it/disabilita-e-dsa
- Learning verification modality
- The exam consists of an oral examination lasting approximately 30 minutes.
It is designed to assess students’ knowledge of the theoretical content of the course, their understanding of chemical phenomena related to food, their mastery of analytical chemistry applied to food, and their ability to provide clear, well-structured, and critical explanations. - Extended program
- The course covers the following topics in an integrated manner:
-Food quality and safety, with references to food -legislation, novel foods, and functional foods;
-Food components and nutrients: chemical structure and nutritional properties;
-Water in foods and water activity;
-Energy-yielding macronutrients (proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates);
-Chemical reactions responsible for food deterioration (lipid oxidation, browning reactions);
-Dietary fiber: structure, physicochemical properties, and physiological effects;
-Essential micronutrients;
-Conventional and advanced analytical techniques for food quality control;
-Extraction techniques for analytes from food matrices;
-Analytical applications to food matrices (oil, wine, milk);
-Principles of chromatography and applications in food analysis. - Obiettivi Agenda 2030 per lo sviluppo sostenibile
- The course is aligned with the United Nations 2030 Agenda Sustainable Development Goals, with particular reference to the promotion of selected goals such as Good Health and Well-being, Quality Education, Responsible Consumption and Production.