Virgin Olive Oil
Production, Composition, Uses and Benefits for Man
Olive oil is considered to be such a crucial component of the so-called ‘Mediterranean Diet’ that, since 2010, it has been inscribed in UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, and is considered to be a very good dietary habit. In addition, a copious amount of scientific literature has provided evidence that regular consumption of olive oil is associated with longevity, healthier aging, cardiovascular health, prevention and protection against cancer.
Currently, olive oil is gaining a worldwide rise in popularity given that it is widely considered to be a functional food able to provide health and well-being. Indeed, in recent years, the consumption and production of olive tree products, such as olive oil as well as olive fruits, food containing olive oils, leaves, bioactive extracts and single molecules are also increasing worldwide.
At the same time, scientific research about olive tree products is increasing exponentially, involving academics of several disciplines, especially agronomy, arboriculture, engineering, economics, food technology, medicine and pharmacology.
This book is a collection of overviews and original research on various aspects relative to virgin olive oil as well as its well-known and innovative related products, with a special focus on the effects of such products on human health.
Chapters are presented by contributors of international standing and leaders in the field. Specifically, contributors of this book work on all continents which prove the worldwide interest in olive oil and its related products.
The main topic of the book is, of course, virgin olive oil, of which the latest findings on the composition, extraction processes, varieties, growing, geographical characterizations, sensory qualities, culinary performance and medical activity are presented. Table olives and other by-products are also addressed. However, in all the chapters, the benefits of olive tree products to human health are always emphasized and expanded.
This book will be essential reading for nutritionists, pharmacologists, health care professionals, research scientists, agronomists and olive growers, engineers and oil-pressers, gastronomes, teachers and students as well as all those interested in olive tree products.
Table of Contents:
Preface pp,vii-xi
Chapter 1. Chemistry and Bioactive Components of Olive Oil
(Raquel de Pinho Ferreira Guiné, CI&DETS Research Centre and Department of Food Industry, Polytechnic Institute of Viseu, Portugal)
pp,1-14
Chapter 2. Olive Oil: Production, Bioactive Properties and Public Health
(Hui Jun Chih, School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Australia)pp,15-28
Chapter 3. Analysis through Graphical Knowledge of Historical Olive Oil Production Obtained from Mechanical Procedures: Application to the Invention Privileges and Patents from the Historical Archive of the Spanish Office of Patents and Trademarks
(José Ignacio Rojas-Sola and Miguel Castro-García, University of Jaén, Department of Engineering Graphics, Design and Projects,
Campus de las Lagunillas, Spain)pp,29-40
Chapter 4. Fatty Acid, Sterol and Polyphenol Content in Most Monovarietal Oils of the Spanish East Areas
(Isabel López-Cortés, Domingo C. Salazar-García, Domingo M. Salazar and Borja Velázquez-Martí, Department of Vegetal Production, Universidad Politécnica de Valencia, Valencia, Spain and others)pp,41-68
Chapter 5. Effect of the Growing Area and Cultivar on Phenolic Content and Volatiles Compounds of Related Products of Selected Tunisian Olive Varieties
(Faten Brahmi, Guido Flamini, Beligh Mechri and Mohamed Hammami, Laboratory of Biochemistry, UR ‘‘Human Nutrition and Metabolic Disorder”, Faculty of Medicine, Tunisia and others)pp,69-78
Chapter 6. Investigations on the Quality of Italian and Greek Olive Oils in Terms of Varietal and Geographical Origin by Using Different Analytical Methods
(Francesco Longobardi, Grazia Casiello, Daniela Sacco,
Andrea Ventrella, Antonio Sacco and Michael G. Kontominas,
Dipartimento di Chimica, Università di Bari “Aldo Moro”, Bari, Italy and others)pp,79-96
Chapter 7. Olive Variety Suitability and Training System for Modern Olive Growing: Plant Growth and Yield Components
(Mouna Aïachi Mezghani, Institut de l’olivier, Station Régionale de Sousse, Sousse, Tunisie)pp,97-118
Chapter 8. How Agronomic Factors Affects Olive Oil Composition and Quality
(Ricardo Malheiro, Susana Casal, Paula Baptista and José Alberto Pereira, Mountain Research Centre (CIMO), School of Agriculture,
Polytechnic Institute of Bragança, Campus de Santa Apolónia, Bragança, Portugal and others)pp,119-142
Chapter 9. Olive Oil: Production and Nutritional Properties
(María del Pilar Godoy-Caballero, María Isabel Acedo-Valenzuela, Teresa Galeano-Díaz, Héctor Goicoechea and María Julia Culzoni, Departamento de Química Analítica, Universidad de Extremadura, Badajoz, España and others)pp,143-164
Chapter 10. Chemopreventive Activities of Hydroxytyrosol: The Major Phenol Alcohol of Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
(Patrizia Rosignoli, Maria Vittoria Sepporta, Raffaela Fuccelli and Roberto Fabiani, Dipartimento di Chimica, Biologia e Biotecnologie
University of Perugia, Italy)pp,165-186
Chapter 11. Virgin Olive Oil As a Source of Anti-Inflammatory Agents
(Susana M. Cardoso, Marcelo D. Catarino, Marta S. Semião and Olívia R. Pereira, CERNAS, School of Agriculture, Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra, Bencanta, Coimbra, Portugal and others)pp,187-210
Chapter 12. Olive Oil: Molecular Mechanisms and Cardiovascular Protective Role
(Sherif Y. Shalaby, Brandon J. Sumpio,and Bauer E. Sumpio, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA)pp,211-232
Chapter 13. Modern Psychophysics at Work: Dissociation between Sensory and Decision Processes within the Quality Assessment of Olive Oil
(Teresa L. Martín-Guerrero, Concepción Paredes-Olay, Juan M. Rosas, and Manuel M. Ramos-Álvarez, Department of Psychology, University of Jaén, Spain)pp,233-258
Chapter 14. The Role of Virgin Olive Oil in the Traditional Mediterranean Cuisine
(Antonella De Leonardis, Vincenzo Macciola and Francesco Lopez,
Department of Agriculture, Environmental and Food Sciences (DiAAA), University of Molise, Via De Sanctis, 86100 - Campobasso, Italy)pp,259-282
Chapter 15. New Benefits of the Fibre in Green Table Olives
(Sergio Lopez, Sara Jaramillo, Beatriz Bermudez, Rocio Abia and Francisco J.G. Muriana, Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Nutrition, Instituto de la Grasa, Seville, Spain and others)pp,283-300
Chapter 16. From Wastes to Added Value By-Products: An Overview on Chemical Composition and Healthy Properties of Bioactive Compounds of Olive Oil Chain By-Products
(Ana María Gómez-Caravaca, Vito Verardo, Alessandra Bendini and Tullia Gallina Toschi, Department of Analytical Chemistry, University of Granada, Granada, Spain and others)pp,301-334
Chapter 17. Recovery of Polyphenols from Olive Oil Mill Wastes: A Selective Approach Anchored to Molecularly Imprinting Technology
(Raquel Garcia, Nuno Martins and Maria João Cabrita, ICAAM — Instituto de Ciências Agrárias e Ambientais Mediterrânicas,
Universidade de Évora, Évora, Portugal)pp,335-350
Chapter 18. Disposal and Treatment of Olive Oil Industry Wastes (Olive Mill Wastewaters, Solid Wastes) for the Remediation of Polluted Cultivated Soils and Industrial Wastewaters
(Zacharias Ioannou and Victor Kavvadias, Department of Food Science & Nutrition, School of the Environment, University of the Aegean, Myrina, Lemnos, Greece and others)pp,351-370
Index pp,371-392
