Abstract
The inflorescences of Chamaedorea tepejilote Liebm. are consumed as food in Central America and southern Mexico but is an underutilized food because of its sensory characteristics, principally due to its bitter taste. However, the inflorescences of Chamaedorea tepejilote Liebm. are nutritionally promising due to their high protein content (approximately 25%). Protein isolates from pacaya were modified via three different thermal treatments to determine the effect of the treatments on the protein structures. Scanning electron microscopy indicated that the pacaya protein isolate particles had less rough and irregular surfaces with larger particle sizes due to an aggregation process when a thermal treatment was used compared to those when no thermal treatment was used. An increase in the intensity of the low molecular weight protein fractions (≤20 kDa) in the electrophoretic pattern of the proteins was observed, which was generated by the hydrolysis of the proteins by heat treatment. The modifications in the FT-IR spectra showed that thermal treatment of pacaya affected the secondary structure of its proteins, mainly when microwave treatment was used. Raman spectroscopy revealed that the α–helical structure was dominant in the proteins of pacaya and that thermal treatment increased the fraction of the β–sheet structure at the expense of the α–helical structure.
Highlights
Chamaedorea tepejilote Liebm. is an important source as a traditional food in Central America and southern Mexico [1]; this plant has a bitter taste and is only consumed by inhabitants that enjoy bitter tastes [2]
On a dry basis, the protein content in all pacaya protein isolates obtained of flour with different thermal treatments, was low compared to of commercial crops as soy, chickpea, pea, lentil and faba bean isolates [18]
The lipid content for all pacaya protein isolates were low (< 1%) this is concordant with those reported by Leyva-Lopez et al, [19], who indicate that defatting prior to the isolate obtention decreases the lipid content
Summary
Chamaedorea tepejilote Liebm. is an important source as a traditional food in Central America and southern Mexico [1]; this plant has a bitter taste and is only consumed by inhabitants that enjoy bitter tastes [2]. Chamaedorea tepejilote Liebm is used in Mexican traditional medicine for the treatment of respiratory diseases, such as coughs, bronchitis, pneumonia and colds [3]. The inflorescences of Chamaedorea tepejilote Liebm are generally consumed once they are cooked, which softens the inflorescence tissue, reduces the bitter taste and reduces enzymatic activity, but thermal treatment could induce modification of the protein structure since it has been reported that heating causes modifications in the structure/conformation of proteins, depending on the thermal processing, the number of complementary treatments and the operating conditions applied [8]. Some authors have indicated that high intensity ultrasound (HIU) modified the physicochemical properties of protein isolates [9], and some studies have reported that changes in the molecular structure of proteins were observed after
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