The first two sessions were a combined effort with ICBL with 220 participants, followed by two sessions exclusively for 80 ILPS registered participants. All abstracts of the lectures and posters of the three congresses have been published in Chemistry and Physics of Lipids, Volume 143, Issue 1-2, September 2006. They can be reviewed online at www.ilps.org, where you can also find a more extensive meeting report.

ILPS gratefully acknowledges the silver sponsors Avanti Polar Lipids, Inc., USA; Archer Daniels Midland - Lecithin Group, USA; and Spectral Service Laboratory GmbH, Germany. Media sponsor Agro Food Industries Hi-Tech, Italy, promoted this Congress in their journal and website. The sponsors made it possible for invited speakers to be given travel support, and congress fees were attractive.

The European Journal of Lipid Science and Technology has invited the twelve speakers of the two Sphingolipid sessions to submit a short paper. All these papers will be combined in a dossier-type publication.

Lecithin News from the HI-Europe
Willem van Nieuwenhuyzen
(abstract from a meeting report for inform)

The biannual Health Ingredients Europe exhibition and conference was held November 14-16, 2006, in Frankfurt, Germany. The 440 exhibitor booths welcomed over 9000 pre-registered participants for professional contacts and discussions, making this exhibition a successful business event.

One of the eight nominees for the HI innovative award was Lacprodan PL-20 (of Arla Foods, Denmark), a bioactive milk fraction rich in phosphatidylserine and sphingomyelin for lowering stress level and reducing memory impairment.

Suppliers so far have been able to supply sufficient amounts of IP (identity preserved) non-GMO (genetically modified organism) lecithin to European customers. In 2008 the availability of IP, non-GMO soy lecithin may become critical with possibly lower Brazilian supplies. Various Chinese inland companies try to fill the European demand, but some companies should improve quality specifications in order to comply with EU regulation.

Cargill has integrated the range of Phosphatidylcholine Leci-Choline and Phosphatidylserine Leci-PS products of acquired Degussa Food Ingredients in the new Texturant organization, presenting new brochures. ADM promoted the Choline daily intake requirement by deoiled Ultralec lecithins. Enzymotec Israel, an operating unit of the GALAM group, promoted enzymatically-produced soy-based Sharp-PS and SharpPS(tm) Gold, which latter is PS esterified with omega-3 fatty acids. Neptune Biotech from Canada offered Neptune Krill Oil NKO containing 40% Phospholipids, of which 80% is Phosphatidylcholine with high omega-3 fatty acid content. A new exhibitor was the biological health supplement company Biofer, Italy, offering Biosentiale Biofer PC fraction in capsules as OTC anticholesterol and liver cell membrane nutrient.

Patent: Enzymatic production of hydrolyzed lecithin products
(reprinted from inform, July, 2006, 17:7)

Schmitt, H., and others, Cargill, Inc., Wayzata, Minnesota, USA, WO2005100579A1, 10/27/2005. Processes for enzymatic modification of lecithin and related materials, and hydrolyzed products obtained by such modification, are disclosed. One particular implementation provides methods for producing a hydrolyzed product containing hydrolyzed phospholipids, monoglycerides, and diglycerides. For example, such a method may include the steps of: (a) contacting a starting material, such as a lecithin, which includes a phospholipid component and a triglyceride component, in an aqueous or organic solvent medium, with a first enzyme effective to hydrolyze the phospholipid; and (b) subsequently contacting the product of step (a) with a second enzyme, effective to hydrolyze the triglyceride.

Biotechnology News: Basis for hybrid vigor examined
(reprinted from inform, July, 2006, 17:7)

Researchers at the Plant Sciences Institute located at Iowa State University at Ames, Iowa, USA, have reported on heterosis or hybrid vigor, the phenomenon whereby the progeny of particular inbred lines have enhanced agronomic performance relative to both parents, as related to inbred lines of maize (corn). Details of the study were published in the May 2 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (103:6805-6810, 2006).

Global patterns of gene expression, using a microarray containing 13,999 cDNAs, were compared on seedlings of three genotypes: maize inbred lines B73 and Mo17 and their heterotic F1 hybrid. Analyses found 1,367 ESTs (expressed sequence tags) as being significantly differentially expressed among genotypes. All possible modes of gene action were observed, including additivity, high- and low-parent dominance, underdominance and overdominance. The largest proportion of the ESTs (at 78% of the total) showed expression patterns statistically indistinguishable from additivity. The overall findings were considered to be consistent with the hypothesis that the basis of hybrid vigor is multimechanistic and involves molecular mechanisms, including overdominance.

Greater understanding of plant gene activity underlying hybrid vigor is fully expected to allow the development of hybrids carrying desired traits such as capacity for ethanol production.

Biotechnology News: Non-GM allergy-free soybeans available
(reprinted from inform, July, 2006, 17:7)

Crop scientists at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Illinois, USA, and at the USDA-Agricultural Research Service's Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis, Missouri, USA, have identified two soybean lines that do not contain the primary protein linked to soy allergies in children and adults.

Two Chinese soybean lines (PI 567476 and PI 603570A) out of more than 16,000 lines examined have been found to contain virtually identical genetic mutations that do not contain the leading allergy-causing P34 protein, which consists of 379 amino acids.

"We are releasing this information with no patents so that companies and breeders involved with soybeans can incorporate these two lines as quickly as possible," said Theodore Hymowitz, emeritus professor of plant genetics at the University of Illinois. Details of the research are scheduled for publication in the journal Crop Science later in 2006.

The two lines are adapted to Illinois-like conditions and are to be given away to breeders seeking to produce new varieties of allergy-free soybeans without having to resort to genetic engineering. Companies in Japan, Canada, and across the United States have been following the research with particular interest.

The P34 protein had been discovered in the early 1990s by Eliot Herman, a lead scientist at the Danforth Plant Science Center, who, in 2003, successfully used a gene-silencing technique to create a soybean line in which P34 was "knocked out." The availability of the two Chinese lines should now allow the crossing with other soybean lines "without any biotechnology-derived component" to develop non-GM varieties.

Short course "Lecithin: Properties and Technological Functions"
May 11-12, 2007, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada

AOCS Phospholipid Division, ILPS, and Laval University organized this short course prior to the joint AOCS 98th Annual Meeting and 27th ISF Congress. Venue: Dept. of Food Science, Laval University.

Who should attend:
Product developers, QA/QC managers, scientists, lab technicians, application technologists, and plant supervisors working with lecithins and emulsions in institutes, academia, and the food, pharmaceutical, and other industries.

Organizers:
Paul Angers and Willem van Nieuwenhuyzen

Key speakers/instructors:
Paul Van der Meeren, Ghent University, Dept of Applied Analytical and Physical Chemistry, Belgium
Willem van Nieuwenhuyzen, Lecipro Consulting, Limmen, Netherlands
Paul Angers, Joseph Arul c.s., Laval University, Dept of Food Sci & Nutri, Quebec Canada
And others.

Topics will include:

Lecithin Analytical methods

Homogenization: Microfluidizer and other available equipment

Emulsion droplet size (Malvern Zetasizer: PSD, Zeta potential)

Surface tension: Kruss or Tracker Interfacial tension + Water dispersability and Oil emulsification tests

Emulsion Consistency-Viscosity: Rheometer TA demonstration

Course Homepage:
An extensive program, registration form, and hotel and travel information are available at www.aocs.org/meetings. AOCS Phospholipid members are also requested to forward this information to potential interested business relations.

AOCS Phospholipid Best Paper Award 2005

Each year the ILPS sponsors a Best Paper Award at the annual American Oil Chemists' Society (AOCS) meeting. This award recognizes an outstanding published paper or monograph in the area of phospholipid research or applications. The award includes a plaque, certificates for each author, and a $200 honorarium from the ILPS. The winning paper at the 2006 AOCS meeting in St Louis, MO, was Paul Van der Meeren, Mamdouh El-Bakry, Nico Neirynck, and Pascal Nappe, "Influence of Hydrolysed Lecithin Addition on Protein Adsorption and Heat Stability of a Sterilised Coffee Cream Simulant," International Dairy Journal [2005] 15, 1235-1243.

Dr. Paul Van der Meeren presented the results of this paper during the AOCS Phospholipid Division Luncheon on May 1. Paul is full professor at the Department of Applied Analytical and Physical Chemistry, University of Ghent Belgium, speaker-instructor of the Ghent2005 lecithin course and scheduled speaker-instructor of the Quebec2007 and Ghent2008 short courses.

For the 2006 Best Paper Award Competition you are invited to send nominations to sebree@admworld.com (AOCS Phospholipid Division Chair) or jcasey@solae.com (Chair, Best Paper Award Committee).