Abstract
Agave lechuguilla agro-waste is a promising renewable material for biorefining purposes. The procurement of added-value co-products, such as bioactive phytochemicals, is required to improve bioprocesses and promote the bio-based economy of the productive areas of Mexico. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effect of post-harvest management and enzymatic pretreatment as the first stages of the A. lechuguilla valorization process. Four drying methods were compared, and enzymatic hydrolysis was optimized to obtain a flavonoid-enriched extract applying ultrasound-assisted extraction. In both experiments, the total phenolic (TPC) and flavonoid (TFC) contents, HPLC-UV flavonoid profiles, and radical scavenging capacity (DPPH) were considered as response variables. The results demonstrated that light exposure during the drying process particularly affected the flavonoid content, whereas oven-dehydration at 40 °C in the dark preserved the flavonoid diversity and antioxidant functionality of the extracts. Flavonoid glycoside recovery, particularly anthocyanidins, was 1.5–1.4-fold enhanced by enzymatic hydrolysis using the commercial mix Ultraflo© under optimized conditions (pH 4, 40 °C, 180 rpm, and 2.5 h) compared to the unpretreated biomass. The extraction of flavonoids from A. lechuguilla bagasse can be carried out using a scalable drying method and enzymatic pretreatment. This study confirmed the potential of this agro-waste as a source of marketable natural products.
Highlights
A global effort to achieve environmental sustainability and product safety is still challenged in retrieving and valorizing agro-industrial wastes [1,2,3,4,5]
As a new raw material that is already valuable for bioenergy production, the A. lechuguilla contains specialized metabolites, such as bioactive flavonoids
This process preserved the flavonoid content of the A. lechuguilla bagasse, and the antioxidant capacity was observed
Summary
A global effort to achieve environmental sustainability and product safety is still challenged in retrieving and valorizing agro-industrial wastes [1,2,3,4,5]. In Mexico, the Tampico fiber industry discharges on the surrounding land over 150,000 tons/year of plant residues leading to environmental and health issues [6,7]. The Tampico fiber is traditionally obtained from Agave lechuguilla (Asparagaceae), a native species of northeastern Mexico [8,9], with annual productivity of around 55.98 kg/ha [10]. Since 1996, the fiber recovery from wild A. lechuguilla has been considered a sustainable activity due to the corresponding Mexican Normative, which ensures regrowth of the central leaves for further harvests [12,13,14]. Due to its large availability and its lack of competition with human foods and animal feeds, A. lechuguilla biomass is considered a promising option for bioenergy production [7]
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