Screening of the Phenolic Compound and Antioxidant Activity from Sugar Process

Abstract

Phenolic profile and antioxidant activity of sugarcane plant parts (leaf, stem, and root), intermediate products (1st juice, mixed juice, clarified juice and syrup), product (raw sugar) and by-products (molasses, bagasse, and filter cake) from sugar process were first studied from the same production line. Total phenolic content (TPC) of all samples was obtained from solvent extraction and was quantified by Folin-Ciocalteu (FC) method. The identification and quantification of individual phenolic compounds (PC) were performed with HPLC-DAD. The antioxidant activity of all extracted samples was determined by the DPPH method. HPLC analysis revealed that the PC of extracts was composed of chlorogenic acid, vanillic acid, caffeic acid, 4-hydroxybenzoic acid, syringic acid, and p-Coumaric acid. Sugarcane leaf (1,804.15±144.34 mg/kg dry basis), molasses (2,092.56±153.17 mg/kg dry basis) and bagasse (282.65±25.20 mg/kg dry basis) were the 3 major sources of phenolic compounds from the sugar process as quantified by HPLC-DAD. These materials also exhibited strong antioxidant activity among studied samples. The DPPH radical scavenging activity of sugarcane leaf, molasses and bagasse extracts were 92.34±0.07, 91.46±0.28, and 86.96±1.71 %, respectively. These results revealed that sugarcane leaf, molasses and bagasse are a potential source for further use in various applications that required antioxidant activity for supplementary foods, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics for health promotion.
 HIGHLIGHTS
 
 The complete screening of phenolic profile from a single sugar process (sugarcane plant parts, intermediate products, product, and by-products)
 Sugarcane leaf, molasses, and bagasse were the 3 major sources with the highest phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity from the sugar process
 Leaf, molasses, and bagasse extract may be used as a high added-value natural bioactive material used for food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic application
 
 GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT