This work gives novel information about the antimicrobial effect and volatiles of melanoidins isolated from Maria biscuit, common and soft bread. Melanoidins were isolated from scraped and sieved crusts (1 mm), after gluten digestion, 10 kDa ultrafiltration, and diafiltration. Finally, they were freeze-dried. Headspace solid-phase dynamic extraction coupled with a gas chromatograph with a mass spectrometer was used to determine the volatile profiles. The antimicrobial effect was evaluated against isolated strains of the most relevant food spoilage and pathogen microorganisms, together with some molds and yeasts. Melanoidins from common bread exhibited the most extensive antimicrobial activities and showed the most composite volatile profile. No undesirable compounds, such as furfural and 5-hydroxy-methyl-furfural, were found in any of the melanoidins studied. The obtained data pointed out that bakery melanoidins can exert effective food technological properties as natural antimicrobials that can improve shelf-life and security of foodstuffs, together with a possible contribution to food aroma.
