Aurélie Ballon

Ms. Aurélie Ballon

orcid

Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

8Years (2019-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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1 January 2019 in The Journal of Nutrition
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
ABAurélie Ballon
Aurélie Ballon
MNManuela Neuenschwander
Manuela Neuenschwander
SSSabrina Schlesinger
Sabrina Schlesinger
Epidemiologic studies have indicated that breakfast skipping is associated with risk of type 2 diabetes. However, the shape of the dose-response relation and the influence of adiposity on this association have not been reported. We investigated the association between breakfast skipping and risk of type 2 diabetes by considering the influence of the body mass index (BMI). In this systematic review and meta-analysis, PubMed and Web of Science were searched up to August 2017. Prospective cohort studies on breakfast skipping and risk of type 2 diabetes in adults were included. Summary RRs and 95% CIs, without and with adjustment for BMI, were estimated with the use of a random-effects model in pairwise and dose-response meta-analyses. In total 6 studies, based on 96,175 participants and 4935 cases, were included. The summary RR for type 2 diabetes comparing ever with never skipping breakfast was 1.33 (95% CI: 1.22, 1.46, n = 6 studies) without adjustment for BMI, and 1.22 (95% CI: 1.12, 1.34, n = 4 studies) after adjustment for BMI. Nonlinear dose-response meta-analysis indicated that risk of type 2 diabetes increased with every additional day of breakfast skipping, but the curve reached a plateau at 4-5 d/wk, showing an increased risk of 55% (summary RR: 1.55; 95% CI: 1.41, 1.71). No further increase in risk of type 2 diabetes was observed after 5 d of breakfast skipping/wk (P for nonlinearity = 0.08). This meta-analysis provides evidence that breakfast skipping is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, and the association is partly mediated by BMI.

4 December 2021 in Foods
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
JWJunjing Wang
Junjing Wang
ABAurélie Ballon
Aurélie Ballon
Karin SchroenKarin Schroen
Karin Schroen
Sílvia de Lamo-CastellvíSílvia de Lamo-Castellví
Sílvia de Lamo-Castellví
MFMontserrat Ferrando
Montserrat Ferrando
Carme GüellCarme Güell
Carme Güell
Water-in-oil-in-water (W1/O/W2) emulsions are complex delivery systems for polyphenols amongst other bio-actives. To stabilize the oil–water interphase, dairy proteins are commonly employed, which are ideally replaced by other, more sustainable sources, such as insect proteins. In this study, lesser mealworm (Alphitobius diaperinus) protein concentrate (LMPC) is assessed and compared to whey protein (WPI) and pea protein (PPI), to stabilize W1/O/W2 emulsions and encapsulate a commercial polyphenol. The results show that LMPC is able to stabilize W1/O/W2 emulsions comparably to whey protein and pea protein when using a low-energy membrane emulsification system. The final droplet size (d4,3) is 7.4 μm and encapsulation efficiency is between 72 and 74%, regardless of the protein used. Under acidic conditions, the LMPC shows a similar performance to whey protein and outperforms pea protein. Under alkaline conditions, the three proteins perform similarly, while the LMPC-stabilized emulsions are less able to withstand osmotic pressure differences. The LMPC stabilized emulsions are also more prone to droplet coalescence after a freeze–thaw cycle than the WPI-stabilized ones, but they are the most stable when exposed to the highest temperatures tested (90 °C). The results show LMPC’s ability to stabilize multiple emulsions and encapsulate a polyphenol, which opens the door for application in foods.

20 January 2023 in Membranes
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
MRMadushika Keshani Ranasinghe
Madushika Keshani Ranasinghe
ABAurélie Ballon
Aurélie Ballon
Sílvia de Lamo-CastellvíSílvia de Lamo-Castellví
Sílvia de Lamo-Castellví
MFMontserrat Ferrando
Montserrat Ferrando
Carme GüellCarme Güell
Carme Güell
Mealworm, TM (Tenebrio molitor), and black soldier fly, BSF (Hermetia illucens) are of special interest for food and feed applications due to their environmental benefits such as low water and land requirements, low greenhouse gas emissions, and high feed-conversion efficiency. This study assesses the use of ultrafiltration (UF) to fractionate protein concentrates from TM and BSF (TMPC, BSFPC) in order to enhance emulsifying and foaming properties. A 30 kDa regenerated cellulose acetate membrane enabled the separation of concentrate and permeate fractions for both insect proteins from two different initial feed concentrations (10 and 7.5 g/L). Permeate flux and protein transmission behave differently depending on the insect type and the initial concentration; while for TMPC permeate flux increases with a decrease in the initial protein concentration, it is not affected for BSFPC. The existing membrane cleaning protocols are suitable for recovering water flux after UF of insect proteins, enabling membrane re-use. Emulsifying activity is maintained for all the TMPC fractions, but it is significantly lower for the permeate fractions of BSFPC. Foaming properties are maintained for all the UF fractions of BSFPC and the ones from 7.5 g/L TMPC. Acidic solubilization leads to a fraction with enhanced emulsifying capacity and one with higher foaming capacity than the original for BSFPC. This study opens the door to membrane technology for insect protein fractionation, which has not been studied so far and has already provided useful solutions for other animal and plant proteins.