Plant Juice Research Articles

Clean Foods: The Inhibitory Effect of Five Natural Juices on the Browning of Apple Slices during Drying

Enzymatic browning, which accompanies food preservation processes based on drying, is a common obstacle to obtaining marketable and consumer-appealing products. In this paper, we investigate the application of one of the methods commonly used in order to counter the browning process, namely dipping. Dipping involves a soaking of the foods in liquids or solutions in order to suppress the activity of polyphenoloxidase (PPO) enzymes, either by physically preventing oxygen from interacting with it, or by dramatically decreasing water activity and thus slowing down water-dependent reactions. In this study, juices from selected fresh fruits with high ascorbic acid content were used as natural preservatives with antibrowning effects. The juices were prepared from fruit of the following species: Sorbus aucuparia, Diospyros kaki, Hippophae rhamnoides, Actinidia deliciosa, and Rosa canina. The effect of selected juices on color change was tested on dried “Idared” apple slices and was compared to slices of freshly cut apples (standard). The browning index of all sample groups showed significant differences between treatment groups and the standard except for samples treated with Rosa canina juice. The effect of the juices was also evaluated via a sensory panel, where color change, degree of browning, change of taste, and overall acceptability of the resulting color and taste were evaluated. Results showed that the best antibrowning effect was achieved by macerate from fruits of Rosa canina. The results of this study showed that dipping in some plant juices has the potential of complementing or replacing the sulphite-based approach, which is the current method of choice of the food industry.

The Use of Probabilistic Modelling in Express Controlling of Apple Juices Quality

Background. Quality control of plant juice in the process of its mass production. Objective. Development of support system for decision making in the process of express monitoring of the plant juice quality on the basis of electroacoustic measurements. Methods. Theoretical and experimental substantiation of expedience of the use of a new criterion for juice quality evaluation which is based on the regularities of distribution of electromagnetic waves due to the concentration of the dry substances in juice. Results. The support system for decision making on the basis of Bayes networks in express monitoring and modeling of plant juice production is developed on the basis of their physical characteristics. Conclusions. The use of the suggested support system for decision making allows increasing substantially operational efficiency of the production line due to the potential possibility for prognosticating end product quality and making fast corrections of its production regime.

An innovative green extraction process for the development of traditional herbal drugs or food supplements

Numerous plants are traditionally used in their fresh form in order to preserve the compounds within and avoid the risk of denaturation occurring during the drying process [1]. Usually, plant juice is obtained by squeezing the freshly harvested plant. Another way is to make an infusion or alcoholic tincture with fresh plant. For example, oat herb (Avena sativa L.) expressed juice is traditionally used for relief of mild symptoms of mental stress and to aid sleep (EMEA/HMPC/202966/2007). Purple coneflower herb (Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moench.) expressed juice also has a well-established use for the short-term prevention and treatment of common cold (EMEA/HMPC/104945/2006). However, during the pressing process, the plant cell walls can restrain the access and recovery of some interesting compounds. Furthermore, it releases enzymes which could potentially modify and alter these compounds: hydrolases, oxidases, de-glucosidases, etc. The adaptation of a twin-screw extrusion technology, mainly used in food industries for plant juice expression, allows us to obtain an enriched juice containing unadulterated compounds. Indeed, the combination of high pressure induced by the twin-screw rotation and rapid thermal treatment leads to complete destructuring of plant cell walls and an inhibition of enzyme activity, giving a juice with a higher yield and a higher active content. In purple coneflower juice, the level of caffeic acids (caftaric and cichoric acids) obtained by this technology is 0.79 mg/g of plant wet weight, whereas it is 0.0 mg/g by simple juice expression (due to polyphenoloxidases degradation [2]) and 0.12 mg/g of plant wet weight by water extraction at 100 °C.

LACTOBACILLUS-FERMENTED PLANT JUICE AS A POTENTIAL INGREDIENT IN COSMETICS: FORMULATION AND ASSESSMENT OF NATURAL MOUTHWASH

ABSTRACTObjective: Oral care cosmetics are essential for all populations and are systematically used to treat oral problems. The chemicals free natural cosmeticsare the choice of many people. Thus, this study was aimed to formulate and to assess the natural mouthwash (MW) solution from LactobacillusfermentedThai medicinal plants juice.Methods: The selected (betel, green tea, clove, black galingale, mangosteen, and noni) plant juices were subjected to Lactobacillus plantarum mediatedfermentation. The fermented plant juices (FPJ) were formulated into MW solution with different concentrations of peppermint oil. MW formulationswere assessed for physical appearance, stability, and anti-microbial activities.Results: About 2% of peppermint oil in FPJ was found as organoleptically optimum. The pH and refractive indexes of the MWs were not affectedduring storage and stability assessments. All the FPJ-MWs formulations showed antimicrobial activity against Group A Staphylococcus, and other oralpathogens - Escherichia coli, Streptococcus aureus, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Moreover, black galingale, mangosteen, and noni based MW formulasalso exhibited anti-candida activity. The MW made from fermented black galingale (Kaempferia parviflora) juice was the most potent antimicrobialformulation with excellent physical stability.Conclusion: The study concluded that fermented plant-herbal juices can be used as natural MW recipe with 2% of peppermint oil to improve theflavor and aroma. The formulations were stable, free of microbial contamination, and also exhibited antimicrobial activity. Further extended stabilitystudy and clinical trials are necessary to develop a commercial FPJ-based natural MW recipe.Keywords: Fermentation, Formulation, Lactobacillus, Mouthwash.

Health Benefits of Morinda citrifolia (Noni): A Review

Background: Morinda citrifolia (Noni) has been used widely as a complementary and alternative therapy in many countries owing to its potent antioxidant activity and proven health benefits. Traditionally, it finds used as a therapeutic remedy to various diseases as an antibacterial, antitumor, anthelminthic, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, immunostimulant. Also it has proved beneficial in conditions like gastritis, skin diseases, respiratory infections, menstrual and urinary tract disorders, fever, diabetes and venereal diseases. Objective: This review emphasizes on the phytochemical and mineral profile of the different parts of Noni plant. In addition, this review corroborates the pharmacological basis for the various health benefits, traditional and medicinal applications of Noni. Materials and Methods: All the available information of Noni were collected from electronic databases such as Academic Journals, Ethnobotany, Ethnopharmacology, Springer, PubMed, Google Scholar, Science Direct and other primary and secondary sources. Results: According to our search results pertaining to scientific literature, Morinda citrifolia is used for more than 40 types of ailments worldwide. Crude extract of various parts of plant and fruit juice are reported to contain amino acids, anthraquinones, fatty acids, flavonoids, iridoids, lignans, polysaccharides, sterols, sugars, terpenoids etc. which are therapeutically useful for a broad range of pathological conditions. Fourteen human clinical trials have validated the remarkable health benefits of Noni. Conclusion: Literatures prove that Noni is pharmacologically active and is used in different forms of cancer, viz. colon, esophageal, breast, colorectal cancers; cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, arthritis, hypertension. These properties are substantiated by the preclinical or/and clinical investigations.

Aqueous Fraction of Cucumber Plant Extract Detoxifies Paraquat Phytotoxicity as a Superoxide Scavenger

The aqueous fraction of a methanol extract from a cucumber plant without fruit successively detoxified the paraquat phytotoxicity to soybean leaf. No injury was found when a 0.1% aqueous solution along with 100 μM paraquat was applied to the test plant. The cucumber extract induced the successful reduction of electrolyte leakage and malondialdehyde (MDA) production as a result of membrane lipid peroxidation. The cucumber extract had DPPH, hydroxyl-radical and superoxide scavenging activities of 82.3%, 68% and 71.2% for 5 mg/mL of the active substance, respectively. The mode of action for the active substance extracted from cucumber plants for paraquat detoxification might originate from the scavenging superoxide, produced by the bipyridyl radicals of paraquat. It is highly likely that the juice of cucumber plants has a curative role in patients poisoned by paraquat or peroxide pesticides. Practical Applications The cucumber plant extract detoxified Paraquat phytotoxicity to soybean leaf. The successful reduction of electrolyte leakage and malondialdehyde (MDA) production. The cucumber extract had DPPH, hydroxyl-radical and superoxide scavenging activities. The detoxification might originate from the scavenging bipyridyl radicals of paraquat.

Volatile, anthocyanidin, quality and sensory changes in rabbiteye blueberry from whole fruit through pilot plant juice processing.

High antioxidant content and keen marketing have increased blueberry demand and increased local production which in turn mandates new uses for abundant harvests. Pilot scale processes were employed to investigate the anthocyanidin profiles, qualitative volatile compositions, and sensorial attributes in not-from-concentrate (NFC) 'Tifblue' rabbiteye blueberry juices. Processing prior to pasteurization generally resulted in increased L* and hue angle color, while a* , b* , and C* decreased. After 4 months pasteurized storage, non-clarified juice (NCP) lost 73.8% of total volatiles compared with 70.9% in clarified juice (CJP). There was a total anthocyanidin decrease of 84.5% and 85.5% after 4 months storage in NCP and CJP, respectively. Storage itself resulted in only 14.2% and 7.2% anthocyanidin loss after pasteurization in NCP and CJP. Storage significantly affected nine flavor properties in juices; however, there were no significant differences in the blueberry, strawberry, purple grape, floral, sweet aroma, or sweet tastes between processed and stored juices. NFC pasteurized blueberry juices maintained desirable flavors even though highly significant volatile and anthocyanidin losses occurred through processing. Maintenance of color and flavor indicate that NFC juices could have an advantage over more abusive methods often used in commercial juice operations. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

Phytometabolomic fingerprinting of selected actinorhizal fruits popularly consumed in North-East India

The biodiversity hub at north-eastern region of India contains actinorhizal plants like Elaeagnus pyriformis, Myrica nagi and Myrica esculenta which serve as functional food for the natives. Apart from having immense nutritional value, fruits of these plants have been utilized in traditional medicine and have displayed antioxidant behavior as observed from our previous findings. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the phytochemical fingerprints of the fruit juices of some actinorhizal plants using GC-MS method and correlate the data with the therapeutic value of the fresh fruit juice. The results established the abundance of several chemical species with potential medicinal properties such as anti-diabetic, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective activities. However, further studies are needed to isolate and identify the specific phyto-compounds involved in managing various diseases.

Natural Materials to Absorb Water from Environment

In nature, there is a large number of materials to be discovered, all with different characteristics and for certain functions. In the case of plants, they are responsible for collecting, taking care and protect water naturally.In Mexico there are different plants of the cactus family, which catch and retain water for their existence, so some plants collect more volume of body water than they have. It is very important for this investigation.In Mexico and throughout the continent there is a common cactus or chumbera that easily adapts to the environment and very rampant in this country, so that its study and analysis makes it one of the most important natural systems for this research, because 95% of it is water and the other 5% is organic material.Later, the common Maguey or agave plant is analyzed, which is important for the history of ancient Mexico, this long before the Spaniards arrived in America. The agave juice and whole plant were an important part of Mexican culture [1], even today is used in many regions and is an important part of the economy in this country.Last but not least is the barrel cactus plant, which surprisingly lets us see how natural systems build structural and formal elements in order to the creation and configuration of new materials that can significantly help to collect water.

Improving the process of I carbonation in sugar production

Of the total effect of the removal of non-sugars 30–36 % achieved in modern schemes extract purification, a large proportion removed by adsorption of calcium carbonate particles formed in the process of carbonation. To improve the efficiency of the purification steps juice we have proposed a two-stage carbonation I cleaned juice. Holding two stages I saturation at high pH juice is justified in view of the efficiency of adsorption treatment with calcium carbonate. To quantify the proposed option saturation performed laboratory research on plant juices derived from beet varying quality, with the definition of quality indicators to be cleansed juice at all stages of processing the raw juice in warm preliming, the combined main liming, I and II carbonation. Indicators were evaluated for juice in the sugar industry accepted methods. In comparison with the standard version of the proposed two-stage version of I carbonation with intermediate filtration improves filtration performance carbonated juice on 24–26 %, reduce the color of the purified juice to 17–23 %, the content of calcium in the 22–24 %, improve the overall treatment effect 16–19 % (relative). Improving the quality of the purified juice ensures the production of white sugar of standard quality, an increase in the cleaning effect of diffusion juice reduces the loss of sucrose in the molasses and increases the yield of the final commercial product. The proposed version of the separation processes of thermochemical conversion of non-sugars will create conditions for maximum removal by adsorption of their decay products, particularly dyes.

Identification and validation of QTLs controlling multiple traits in sorghum

Sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) is a promising crop for biofuel and forage production, having strong resilience to multiple stresses and being capable of thriving on marginal land. The main goals in sweet sorghum improvement are to increase biomass and sugar yield. We validated quantitative trait loci (QTLs) controlling plant height, biomass, juice weight and Brix with 181 recombinant inbred lines derived from a cross between Shihong137, a dwarf grain sorghum, and L-Tian, a tall sweet sorghum, under four environments. Seven QTLs for plant height, stem and leaf fresh weight, stem fresh weight and juice weight could be repeatedly identified across four environments. However, three of those major QTLs, qPH7-2, qSLFW9 and qSFW9, had strong epistatic effect. Many QTLs related to biomass production were co-localised with previously known height QTLs, suggesting that plant height is a major trait regulating biomass production. However, qSFW1-2, qSLFW6-1, and qSLFW6-2 were mapped to positions with no known height QTL. We also identified and validated stable qBrix2 across environments. This study provided a genetic basis for integrated approaches, including plant height, to improve sweet sorghum biomass and sugar production.

MANAGEMENT OF BACTERIAL LEAF BLIGHT DISEASE OF SALINAS RICE VARIETY USING ORGANIC BASED TEAS UNDER ADVERSED CONDITION OF LIGUASAN MARSH, PHILIPPINES

Organic-based teas are proven to make environmental friendly, less cost and readily available compared to synthetic chemical pesticides. Likewise, application of organic tea enhances soil fertility, sustains productivity and provides efficient control of plant pathogens. This study was conducted to effectively manage through an in vivo test the bacterial leaf blight (BLB) of rice in adverse condition of Liguasan marsh from February to August 2012. Of the organic pesticides tested against BLB of rice causing Xanthomonas Oryzae Pv. oryzae, Vermi tea was found effective (E) and was comparable to Antica (commercial check) while Kamantigue(Impatiens balsamina Linn) Plant Juice (KPJ) and Effective Microorganism (EM) were moderately effective (ME). Plants applied with Antica (commercial check) had the highest yield of 5.0 t ha-1 but comparable to plants applied with Vermi Tea (4.9 t ha-1). Plants applied with EM and KPJ had comparable yield of 4.8 and 4.7 t ha-1, respectively. Costefficacy of treatments usage for a hectare of rice gave a high return of investment (ROI%) in VT (118.4%), EM (113.9%), KPJ (109.5%), and Antica (11.5%), respectively. The low cost and significant effect action provided by the different biopesticides employed increased the ROI of rice production per hectare under adverse condition of Liguasan marsh.

Growth Performance of Broilers with Probiotic Supplementation

The prophylactic use of antibiotic to prevent diseases as well as promote growth in food animals draws a number of concerns on human health. Supplementation of probiotics from natural sources offers alternatives to synthetic antibiotics to enhance growth and prevent gastro-intestinal diseases of broilers. The study determined the effects of probiotics from different locally available sources on the growth performance of broilers. A total of 90 Starbro strain straight run day-old chicks were used in six treatment diets: positive control using commercial antibiotic (TCA), probiotics from milk (TMi), indigenous microorganisms (TIM), plant juice (TPJ), fish (TF) and oriental herbs (TH). Each treatment was replicated three times with five animals per replication arranged in Completely Randomized Design. Recommended protocols were observed in the feeding trial. Results disclosed that feed intake, water intake, weight gain, feed conversion efficiency and supplemented water conversion efficiency of the broilers supplemented with probiotics have no significant difference from the broilers supplemented with antibiotic. The greatest gross margin was realized in TF followed by TPJ and TIM. The result indicates that broiler production can be profitably carried out with the use of probiotics from different sources as an alternative or replacement of synthetic commercial antibiotic.

Comparative evaluation of five plant extracts and juices for nanoiron synthesis and application for hexavalent chromium reduction

The effectiveness of five plant extracts and juices, i.e. extracts of Camellia sinensis (green tea, GT), Syzygium aromaticum (clove, CL), Mentha spicata (spearmint, SM), Punica granatum juice (pomegranate, PG) and Red Wine (RW), for the production of nanoiron suspensions and their application for Cr(VI) reduction was investigated. Polyphenols contained in extracts act as reducing agents for iron ions in aqueous solutions, forming thus iron nanoparticles, and stabilize the nanoparticles produced from further oxidation and agglomeration. The maximum amount of polyphenols extracted per g of herbs was obtained at herb mass to water volume ratio varying from 10 to 20g/L. Suspensions of nanoparticles with sizes below 60nm were produced by mixing iron chloride solution with the plant extracts and juices investigated. The maximum concentration of nanoiron in suspensions was estimated to 22mM, obtained using RW and PG at a mixing ratio of iron solution to extract equal to 2. Lower concentrations, up to 18mM, were achieved using GT and CL extracts. Therefore, PG juice and RW were considered as more effective for nanoiron production, and, together with GT extracts, they were selected for the production of nanoiron suspensions, which have been proven effective for Cr(VI) reduction, reaching removal capacity as high as 500mg Cr(VI) per g of iron in nanoparticles.

Bottled water production using the condensed water from a concentrated orange juice plant

Evaporated water is produced during the juice concentration process by separation of the condensed water in the evaporator. This evaporated water is fully, but poorly used, for example, washing fruits. Considering it as a fraction of the fruit itself, this study proposed its use as “fruit water” bottled for human consumption. Evaporated water samples were characterized according to the following parameters established by the Brazilian technical regulations for bottled water: inorganic, organic substances, pesticides, microorganisms, and physical properties. The results show that the only parameters that exceed the maximum permitted levels were apparent color and turbidity. Then, tests were conducted in laboratory and in pilot scale for evaluation of technology of the membrane separation process (MSP) for the purpose of reducing the apparent color of the evaporated water of citric juice to less than or equal to 5units of Pt/Co and simultaneously the turbidity to less than or equal to 1 NTU. The ultrafiltration in cellulose membrane of 30kDa at 1bar pressure was effective in reducing the apparent color and turbidity of the recovered water from concentrate orange juice, with values ​​below the maximum allowed by law, demonstrating that this water meets Brazilian quality requirements for human consumption.

A unique, highly conserved secretory invertase is differentially expressed by promastigote developmental forms of all species of the human pathogen, Leishmania.

Leishmania are protozoan pathogens of humans that exist as extracellular promastigotes in the gut of their sand fly vectors and as obligate intracellular amastigotes within phagolysosomes of infected macrophages. Between infectious blood meal feeds, sand flies take plant juice meals that contain sucrose and store these sugars in their crop. Such sugars are regurgitated into the sand fly anterior midgut where they impact the developing promastigote parasite population. In this report we showed that promastigotes of all Leishmania species secreted an invertase/sucrase enzyme during their growth in vitro. In contrast, neither L. donovani nor L. mexicana amastigotes possessed any detectable invertase activity. Importantly, no released/secreted invertase activity was detected in culture supernatants from either Trypanosoma brucei or Trypanosoma cruzi. Using HPLC, the L. donovani secretory invertase was isolated and subjected to amino acid sequencing. Subsequently, we used a molecular approach to identify the LdINV and LmexINV genes encoding the ~72 kDa invertases produced by these organisms. Interestingly, we identified high fidelity LdINV-like homologs in the genomes of all Leishmania sp. but none were present in either T. brucei or T. cruzi. Northern blot and RT-PCR analyses showed that these genes were developmentally/differentially expressed in promastigotes but not amastigotes of these parasites. Homologous transfection studies demonstrated that these genes in fact encoded the functional secretory invertases produced by these parasites. Cumulatively, our results suggest that these secretory enzymes play critical roles in the survival/growth/development and transmission of all Leishmania parasites within their sand fly vector hosts.

Non-invasive assessment of leaf water status using a dual-mode microwave resonator.

The water status in plant leaves is a good indicator for the water status in the whole plant revealing stress if the water supply is reduced. The analysis of dynamic aspects of water availability in plant tissues provides useful information for the understanding of the mechanistic basis of drought stress tolerance, which may lead to improved plant breeding and management practices. The determination of the water content in plant tissues during plant development has been a challenge and is currently feasible based on destructive analysis only. We present here the application of a non-invasive quantitative method to determine the volumetric water content of leaves and the ionic conductivity of the leaf juice from non-invasive microwave measurements at two different frequencies by one sensor device. A semi-open microwave cavity loaded with a ceramic dielectric resonator and a metallic lumped-element capacitor- and inductor structure was employed for non-invasive microwave measurements at 150 MHz and 2.4 Gigahertz on potato, maize, canola and wheat leaves. Three leaves detached from each plant were chosen, representing three developmental stages being representative for tissue of various age. Clear correlations between the leaf- induced resonance frequency shifts and changes of the inverse resonator quality factor at 2.4 GHz to the gravimetrically determined drying status of the leaves were found. Moreover, the ionic conductivity of Maize leaves, as determined from the ratio of the inverse quality factor and frequency shift at 150 MHz by use of cavity perturbation theory, was found to be in good agreement with direct measurements on plant juice. In conjunction with a compact battery- powered circuit board- microwave electronic module and a user-friendly software interface, this method enables rapid in-vivo water amount assessment of plants by a handheld device for potential use in the field.

The host plant metabolite glucose is the precursor of diffusible signal factor (DSF) family signals in Xanthomonas campestris.

Plant pathogen Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris produces cis-11-methyl-2-dodecenoic acid (diffusible signal factor [DSF]) as a cell-cell communication signal to regulate biofilm dispersal and virulence factor production. Previous studies have demonstrated that DSF biosynthesis is dependent on the presence of RpfF, an enoyl-coenzyme A (CoA) hydratase, but the DSF synthetic mechanism and the influence of the host plant on DSF biosynthesis are still not clear. We show here that exogenous addition of host plant juice or ethanol extract to the growth medium of X. campestris pv. campestris could significantly boost DSF family signal production. It was subsequently revealed that X. campestris pv. campestris produces not only DSF but also BDSF (cis-2-dodecenoic acid) and another novel DSF family signal, which was designated DSF-II. BDSF was originally identified in Burkholderia cenocepacia to be involved in regulation of motility, biofilm formation, and virulence in B. cenocepacia. Functional analysis suggested that DSF-II plays a role equal to that of DSF in regulation of biofilm dispersion and virulence factor production in X. campestris pv. campestris. Furthermore, chromatographic separation led to identification of glucose as a specific molecule stimulating DSF family signal biosynthesis in X. campestris pv. campestris. (13)C-labeling experiments demonstrated that glucose acts as a substrate to provide a carbon element for DSF biosynthesis. The results of this study indicate that X. campestris pv. campestris could utilize a common metabolite of the host plant to enhance DSF family signal synthesis and therefore promote virulence.

Bio-organic Fertilizer on Pechay Homegarden in Cotabato

This study focus on the determination of bio-organic fertilizer and levels of application that could gave favorable response on the growth and yield of pechay planted in a home garden at Arakan, Cotabato. Bio-organic farming is a key to sustainable agriculture leading to sustainable development. The bio-organic fertilizers used in this study include fermented plant and fruit juice (FPJ and FFJ). Result of the study revealed that FFJ responded significantly better as compared to FPJ on plant height, number of plant leaves and yield in grams per plant. In the case of the levels of application, higher application levels (6tbsp/lit. H2O) excelled on all parameters tested (plant height, number of plant leaves and yield). This implies that higher concentration of FPJ diluted on water will promotes better growth and development of pechay plant emphasizing development of the physical and biological properties of the soil.

Redox protective potential of fruits and vegetables: A review

Although oxidation reactions are crucial for life, they can also be damaging to cells and tissues, causing variety of chronic ailments like, aging, cancer, autoimmune problems, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative disorders etc. Redox protective systems are present in body for general immunization against free radicals, which can be supported by antioxidants that we take in our daily diet. Natural antioxidants such as flavonoids, hydrolysable tannins, coumarins, xanthones, phenolics, terpenoids, ascorbic acid, carotenoids and proanthocyanins are found in various plant products, including fruits, leaves, seeds oils, and juices. This review gives a brief account of research reports on fruits and vegetables which provide free radical scavenging compounds to the body.