Abstract
Acerola is a tropical fruit with a large industrial and commercial appeal due to its organoleptic qualities and bioactive compound-rich nature. Thus, as bioactive compounds (BC) stability is of great interest in the food industry, assessment of preserving techniques to prolong shelf life has become imperative. Hence, the purpose of this study was to evaluate how storage affects BC conservation in microencapsulated and lyophilized acerola pulps over 180 days. For this matter, antioxidant tests, physical-chemical analyzes, and vitamin C analysis by mass spectrometry were performed. Results indicated that microencapsulation better preserved the antioxidants in acerola pulp compared to the other preservation technologies employed. This is due to the greater BC concentration in the microencapsulated, as well as the pH reduction. Furthermore, over 180 days, microencapsulation better preserved the target compounds in acerola pulp compared to lyophilization, as evidenced by the superior content of BC in the former treatment, making it an appealing option for the food sector.
Highlights
Over the 180-days storage period, microencapsulated and lyophilized (MLAP) exhibited the greatest concentration of Total flavonoids (TF), indicating that microencapsulation successfully helped to preserve the flavonoids of samples, concurring with the findings reported by Sansone et al.[38] which stated the positive effects of microencapsulation on shelf life and compound stability
Association of microencapsulation and lyophilization was successful in providing an acerola pulp with higher quality and bioactive compounds (BC) stability
The employed technology successfully aided in preserving bioactive compound concentration and antioxidant activity throughout the 180-days storage period
Summary
Acerola (Malpighia spp.) is a tropical fruit, native to Central America, remarkably rich in bioactive compounds (BC) such as ascorbic acid (AA), phenolic compounds, flavonoids, and anthocyanins.[1,2] The presence of BC has often been studied due to its health benefits since research has shown antioxidant, antimutagenic, antidiabetic, antitumor, and hepatoprotective activity attributed to such compounds.[3,4,5,6]Several products are obtained from acerola pulp, such as juices, nectars, and jams.[7,8] The process to obtain frozen fruit pulp consists of pulping, which removes the insides of the fruit, followed by freezing to preserve nutritional benefits.[3,9] This procedure greatly decreases losses due to perishability, whilst offering fruits with low seasonality.[10]Previous studies[11,12,13] have demonstrated that the stability of BC in acerola pulps are affected by pH, light exposure, oxygen, and temperature. Acerola (Malpighia spp.) is a tropical fruit, native to Central America, remarkably rich in bioactive compounds (BC) such as ascorbic acid (AA), phenolic compounds, flavonoids, and anthocyanins.[1,2] The presence of BC has often been studied due to its health benefits since research has shown antioxidant, antimutagenic, antidiabetic, antitumor, and hepatoprotective activity attributed to such compounds.[3,4,5,6]. Several products are obtained from acerola pulp, such as juices, nectars, and jams.[7,8] The process to obtain frozen fruit pulp consists of pulping, which removes the insides of the fruit, followed by freezing to preserve nutritional benefits.[3,9] This procedure greatly decreases losses due to perishability, whilst offering fruits with low seasonality.[10]. Previous studies[11,12,13] have demonstrated that the stability of BC in acerola pulps are affected by pH, light exposure, oxygen, and temperature. Among the main BCs is the AA, a water-soluble and thermolabile vitamin characterized
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