Investigation of water-soluble polysaccharides and pectin substances of fruits and meal of red currant (Ribes rubrum), sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides), and feijoa (Acca sellowiana)

Abstract

pectin is a polysaccharide found in fruits, vegetables, and roots. It is a gelling agent, thickener and stabilizer (De-Qiang Li etc, 2021). Pectin substances are natural enterosorbents. At the moment, according to the literature analysis (Olufunke D.Akin-Ajani etc, 2021; Paola Foti etc, 2022; Annie Stuart 2021; Yao J. etc, 2022; Welela Meka Kedir etc, 2022) the following pharmacological effects of pectins can be mentioned: they regulate digestion, improve intestinal microflora, have antibacterial effects, are used as prebiotics, regulate blood glucose, help lower blood cholesterol and eliminate toxic substances.
 For the study of pectins, we chose plant materials: fruits and waste products of red currant (Ribes rubrum), sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides), and feijoa (Acca sellowiana).
 The aim of the study was to investigate the water-soluble polysaccharides and pectin substances of the selected raw materials. The technological parameters of the raw materials were determined, the correlation between fresh and dried fruits and waste products, and losses after juice extraction were established. The yield of the finished product - dried waste products - was obtained: red currant (Ribes rubrum) - 12 ± 0.25%, sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) - 15 ± 0.32%, feijoa (Acca sellowiana) - 18 ± 0.38%. It was found that the use of waste products as a secondary raw material can be used as a waste-free, resource-saving production.
 The research methods were the method of determining the swelling index and the fractionation method. it was found that grinding reduces the swelling index, during studying plant materials by determining the swelling index. It was found by the method of fractionation that quantitatively PS are most contained in feijoa: 3.55 ± 0.15% in fruits, and 4.05 ± 0.17% in waste products; red currant fruits contain 2.63 ± 0.07% of PS, and 3.73 ± 0.11% in waste products; and sea buckthorn has the lowest number of PS: 1.07 ± 0.04% in fruits, and 2.38 ± 0.09% in waste products.
 The results of the research give grounds to conclude that the fruits and waste products of red currant (Ribes rubrum), sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides), and feijoa (Acca sellowiana) are a powerful source of pectin.