Lime Citrus Research Articles

Cloud stabilization of citrus fruit juices treated with purified pectin methylesterase inhibitor from lemon (Citrus limon L.).

Cloud destabilization is a significant quality defect of cloudy fruit juices. A proteinaceous inhibitor (PMEI) of pectin methylesterase (PME), identified in lemon, with a fold purity of 89.13, was used to stabilize the cloud of freshly prepared sweet lime, orange, and lemon juice. Lemon PMEI was able to inhibit the PME activity of all three fruit juices. In this study addition of calculated amounts of lemon PMEI to the three juice systems was based on the total PME units present in each juice. Relative turbidity, viscosity, pH, and ζ -potential of the PMEI-treated juices were stable, resulting in uniform distribution of cloud particles throughout the juice system. The sedimentation rate in PMEI treated juices was very low, with cloud particles having smaller particle size diameter. This work demonstrates an alternative option that might create new potential to control the quality deterioration in cloudy fruit juices. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.

Sweet lime (Citrus limetta) peel waste drying approaches and effect on quality attributes, phytochemical and functional properties

Sweet lime (Citrus limetta) peels are a rich and valuable bioactive residue obtained from the citrus processing industry. The high moisture content of the peels can be reduced by drying and dried peels could be used as an ingredient to enhance the nutritional value of foods. In this study, different drying operations viz; infrared drying (IRD), vacuum drying (VD), tray drying (TD), hot-air multimode drying (HAD), and evacuated tube solar drying system without heat pipe (SD1) and with heat pipe (SD2) were explored for their effect on drying behavior and quality characters of sweet lime peels. Proximate, total phenol, total flavonoid, DPPH radical scavenging activity, color profile, and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy of fresh and dried sweet lime peel were analyzed. The results showed that the time taken for IRD was the lowest followed by VD and HAD. The IRD was a suitable technique for retention of crude fibre, ash, and crude protein content. However, VD exhibited a higher L* value and a lower b* value which indicated good retention of color. The fresh peels exhibited total phenol, total flavonoid, and DPPH radical scavenging activity of 25.60 mg GAE/g, 18.85 mg QE/g, and 32.79%, respectively. Besides, peels dried by IRD, TD, & HAD exhibited a significant increase in antioxidants activity compared to fresh peels and those subjected to other drying methods. FTIR spectroscopy confirmed the presence of phenols in the dried peels. IRD of sweet lime peels could be an effective way to preserve the nutrients, phenols, flavonoids, and antioxidants.

Microbial production of multienzyme preparation from mosambi peel using Trichoderma asperellum.

Fruit and vegetable wastes create unhygienic conditions and pose a environmental pollution. The utilization of such wastes as carbon sources for production of enzyme with microbial intervention could be an ecofriendly and profitable approach, apart from diminishing the waste load. The present investigation focused on the feasibility of using mosambi (Citrus limetta) peel as substrate for multienzyme production (pectinase, cellulase and amylase) through microbial intervention. Fifteen fungi were isolated from organic waste and screened in vitro their potential of biodegradation of mosambi peel through enzymes production. The best performing isolate was selected and identified as Trichoderma asperellum NG-125 (accession number-MW287256). Conditions viz. temperature, pH, incubation time and nutrient addition were optimized for efficient enzymes production. The maximum enzyme activity (U ml-1min-1) of pectinase (595.7 ± 2.47), cellulase (497.3 ± 2.06) and amylase (440.9 ± 1.44) were observed at pH 5.5, incubation temperature of 30°C after 10days of fermentation. Moreover, macro-nutrients such as ammonium sulfate (0.1%) and potassium-di-hydrogen-ortho-phosphate (0.01%) further also enhanced the production of enzymes. The SDS-PAGE analysis of purified pectinase, cellulase and amylase using showed molecular mass of 43, 66 and 33kDa, respectively. The enzyme retention activity (ERA) of aforesaid enzymes was also tested with four different natural fiber matrices viz., bagasse, rice husk, paddy straw and wheat straw. Among these, the maximum ERA was observed on bagasse matrix (pectinase-56.35%, cellulose-77.68% and amylase 59.54%). Enzymatic juice clarification yield obtained with test enzyme was 75.8%, as compared to 80.5% of commercial enzyme. The result indicates that T. asperellum may be exploited as multifaceted biocatalysis.

Experimental, molecular docking and molecular dynamic studies of natural products targeting overexpressed receptors in breast cancer.

Natural compounds are proper tools for inhibiting cancer cell proliferation. Hence, the search for these ligands of overexpressed receptors in breast cancer has been a competitive challenge recently and opens new avenues for drug discovery. In this research, we have investigated molecular interactions between natural products and overexpressed receptors in breast cancer using molecular docking and dynamic simulation approaches followed by extraction of the best ligand from Citrus limetta and developing for nanoscale encapsulation composed of soy lecithin using a sonicator machine. The encapsulation process was confirmed by DLS and TEM analyses. Anticancer activity was also examined using MTT method. Among the investigated natural compounds, hesperidin was found to bind to specific targets with stronger binding energy. The molecular dynamics results indicated that the hesperidin-MCL-1 complex is very stable at 310.15 K for 200 ns. The RP-HPLC analysis revealed that the purity of extracted hesperidin was 98.8% with a yield of 1.72%. The results of DLS and TEM showed a strong interaction between hesperidin and lecithin with an entrapped efficiency of 92.02 ± 1.08%. Finally, the cytotoxicity effect of hesperidin was increased against the MDA-MB-231 cell line with an IC50 value of 62.93 μg/mL after encapsulation, whereas no significant effect against the MCF10A cell line. We showed for the first time that hesperidin is a flexible and strong ligand for the MCL-1 receptor. Also, it has the in vitro ability to kill the MDA-MB-231 cell lines without having a significant effect on the MCF10A cell lines. Therefore, hesperidin could be used as a food ingredient to generate functional foods.

An Ecofriendly Approach for Methylene Blue and Lead (II) Adsorption onto Functionalized Citrus limetta Bioadsorbent

An Ecofriendly Approach for Methylene Blue and Lead (II) Adsorption onto Functionalized Citrus limetta Bioadsorbent

Constraints Faced by Farmers due to COVID-19 Disruptions on Agricultural Activities in Nalgonda District of Telangana, India

The objective of the study was to provide insights on disruptions faced by farmers due to COVID-19 for harvest of rabi (winter) crop and preparations for kharif (summer) crop and to suggest appropriate policy measures to enable farmers to cope with similar disruptions in agricultural activities. Data were collected from 125 farmers from five tribal hamlets of Deverkonda mandal of Nalgonda district of Telangana state. The major constraints reported by almost all the farmers (99.2%) were financial problems primarily due to loss of wage work, repayment of informal loans (83%), fear of contracting COVID-19 (92%) and health of family members (89%) which adversely affected their work efficiency. Paddy crop was the most affected as rated by 80.8% of the farmers, followed by vegetables 52.8%, groundnut 41.6%, cotton 37.6%, redgram 16.8% and fruit crops(sweet lime) 13.6% respectively. The farmers faced problems in land preparation (92.8%), high cost of inputs (96.8%), and low availability of inputs (75.2%), transport problems to procure inputs (96.8%), labour shortage (67.2%) and storage of unsold produce (75.2%). Shortage of animal feed (79.2%) and health care of animals (85.6%) were the constraints faced in livestock care. The harvesting of paddy was the most affected due to shortage of labour and harvesting machines. Community seed and animal feed banks, collectives like farmer producer organizations, collateral free credit, small packaging of inputs, promotion of youth entrepreneurship in processing storage and sale of produce and mechanization of small farms, direct procurement, logistic support are some of the immediate and mid- term measures being suggested for building resilience of food systems to face future risks.

Evaluation of Thermal Behavior and Properties of Carbon Dots Prepared by Green Synthesis

Carbon quantum dots are highly fluorescent, non-toxic, thermally stable, and water-soluble novel carbon nanomaterials. The dominance of quantum behavior has drawn scientists’ interest due to their good biocompatibility, low toxicity, high physicochemical and photochemical stability, and ease of synthesis. Carbon dots have shown applications in optoelectronics, photovoltaics, photocatalyst, biomedical such as biosensing, bioimaging, drug delivery, and detection for heavy metal ions in food and water samples. In this paper, we reported the microwave-assisted green synthesis of carbon dots using sweet lime as a carbon source and ethyl diamine as the surface passivating agent. The change in the optical and thermal properties are studied and analyzed with a change in the concentration of EDA in carbon dots. Synthesized samples are characterized by Dynamic Light Scattering and Zeta potential particle sizer to analyze the effect of EDA concentration on the distribution of particle size in the samples and change in surface charge of as-prepared carbon dots. The optical parameters are studied with UV- Visible absorption spectroscopy. Composition and molecular bonding are confirmed by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. Thermal behavior and kinematics are studied by simultaneous Thermogravimetric Analyzer and Differential Scanning Calorimetry.

Distinguishing citrus varieties based on genetic and compositional analyses.

Simple sequence repeats (SSR) markers and secondary metabolite composition were used in combination to study seven varieties of citrus for the first time. With reference to established accessions of citrus, two of the varieties (Chanh Giay and Ma Nao Pan) were predicted to be Mexican key limes, while three were mandarin hybrids (Nagpur, Pontianak and Dalandan) and the remaining two (Qicheng and Mosambi) were related to the sweet orange. Notably, Dalandan was genetically more like a mandarin despite often referred to as an orange locally, whereas Mosambi was more likely to be a sweet orange hybrid although it has also been called a sweet lime due to its green peel and small size. Several key secondary metabolites such as polymethoxyflavones (sinensetin, tangeretin etc.), furanocoumarins (bergapten, citropten etc.) and volatiles (citronellol, α-sinensal etc.) were identified to be potential biomarkers for separation of citrus species. However, despite having similar genetic profiles, variations in the volatile profile of the two limes were observed; similarly, there were differences in the secondary metabolite profiles of the three mandarin hybrids despite having a common ancestral parent, highlighting the usefulness of genetic and compositional analyses in combination for revealing both origins and flavour profiles especially in citrus hybrids. This knowledge would be crucial for variety screening and selection for use in flavour or fragrance creation and application.

Sustainable utilization of Citrus limetta peel for obtaining pectin and its application in cookies as a fat replacer.

In this study, a five-factorial central composite design was employed to optimize pectin extraction from novel source, throughultrasound-assisted extraction.A 35.58% yield was obtained under optimized conditions of pH 1.0, solid (g): liquid (mL) ratio 1:24, amplitude 84.2Hz, duty cycle23s/30s,and time 30min. Theequivalent weight,methoxyl content,anhydrouronicacid content,degree of esterification, water-holding capacity, and oil-holding capacity of the extracted pectin were 796.40 ± 2.07,8.29 ± 0.38%, 71.32 ± 0.54%, 64.66 ± 2.08%, 8.04 ± 0.10g water/g pectin, and2.24 ± 030g oil/g pectin,respectively. The chemical profile of the extracted pectin was assessed with FTIR and NMR analyses. The extracted pectin was utilized as a butter substitute in cookies.Up to 30% butter in cookies could be replaced with the extracted pectin without altering the sensory and physicochemical properties. Overall, results of presented work suggest that using waste-derivedpectin as a fat substitute in cookies offers a sustainable and health-promoting approach for converting waste into wealth.

Monte Carlo simulation, molecular dynamic simulation, quantum chemical calculation and anti-corrosive behaviour of Citrus limetta pulp waste extract for stainless steel (SS-410) in acidic medium

Corrosion occurs as a result of acid-based cleaning process in petroleum industry. Some of the procedures require 15% hydrochloric acid (HCl) solution thus speeding the corrosion rate. In this study, Citrus limetta pulp waste was used to obtain corrosion inhibitor for stainless steel (SS)-410 in presence of 15% HCl solution. The C. limetta pulp waste extract has shown maximum 90.90% corrosion inhibition efficiency at 4 g/L in 15% HCl solution using potentiodynamic polarization analysis. Scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy and X-rays diffraction study confirmed the adsorption of the pulp waste extract on the SS surface. The pulp waste extract followed Langmuir adsorption isotherm thus confirming monolayer formation on the surface of SS-410. Theoretical and computational studies confirmed that Linalool was main phytochemical responsible for anti-corrosive effect. Linalool and SS-410 surface interactions was studied using molecular simulation. Overall, C. limetta pulp waste extract has shown anti-corrosive behaviour in 15% hydrochloric acid on SS-410 surface.

Organoleptic and Morphological Analysis of Citrus Peel Powder

Processing of citrus fruits results in production of a large amount of by product and a major part of this by product is its peels. These peels have the potential of acting as a good nutraceutical resource owing to its high dietary fibre content and phenolic content. However, these peels are under-utilised despite their claimed health benefits. This study evaluates the morphological structure, functional properties and sensory attributes of sweet lime peel and orange peel powder with a aim of providing an economical ingredient for the development of functional foods. Peels of sweet lime and orange were transformed into powder through solar drying followed by grinding. In the present study, we have compared the morphology and organoleptic constituents of orange peel powder (OPP) and sweet lime peel powder (SLPP). The morphology of the two samples was studied by SEM and element composition was studied and analysed by EDX. Organoleptic and sensory attributes were analyzed by a 9 pointer hedonic scale rating. Peel powders were also compared for two functional properties i.e. their Solubility Index and Swelling Power. Orange peel powder (OPP) had a better sensory rating than Sweet lime peel powder (SLPP). The morphology of both powders was same but SLPP had a slightly rough texture than OPP.

Mosambi (Citrus limetta) peel and Sago based biodegradable film: Development and characterization of physical, water barrier and biodegradation properties

The biodegradable film was developed in this study by utilizing Mosambi peel and Sago powder in various blends (0 to 100%). Sago starch was used as a co-biopolymer along with the addition of glycerol (5% v/v) and gum arabic (10% v/v). The developed film was characterized for the various Physico-chemical properties including thickness, moisture content, ash content, color, water solubility, and water absorption capacity. An increase in Sago starch concentration caused a significant increase in moisture content, water absorption, and solubility of the films. A better mechanical property was observed in Sample 5 (Sago 50% Peel 50%) which recorded the highest folding endurance and retraction ratio, signifying greater film strength. The developed film, kept for 15 days, showed 46.45 to 64.42% biodegradability in soil burial tests. Conclusively, both Mosambi peel and Sago at an equal ratio led to the development of biodegradable film with attributes suitable for the packaging material.

Citrus limetta pulp-waste derived Au@CDs as a colorimetric and spectroscopic probe

Citrus limetta pulp-waste derived Au@CDs as a colorimetric and spectroscopic probe

Neodymium oxide nanoparticles synthesis using phytochemicals of leaf extracts of different plants as reducing and capping agents: Growth mechanism, optical, structural and catalytic properties

AbstractThe main idea of this research is to synthesize the neodymium oxide (Nd2O3) nanoparticles with a particle size of less than 10 nm and to investigate the influence of leaf extracts of different plants. Leaf extracts of three plants namely Phyllanthus emblica, Citrus limetta, and Citrus paradisi, were used for the fabrication of Nd2O3 via the sol–gel and green synthesis methods, and the mechanism for the synthesis of neodymium oxide has been investigated. All prepared samples were subjected to UV–Visible Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X‐ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X‐ray (EDX) analysis to study the optical and structural properties. The band gap of the neodymium oxide nanoparticles was observed between 4.45 and 5.26 eV. The bond length of Nd‐O for the neodymium oxide samples as‐synthesized was calculated as 2.18 and 2.24 Å by using FTIR data. Furthermore, kinetic and thermodynamic parameters were calculated using TGA. XRD patterns showed the formation of cubic, monoclinic, and hexagonal structures of Nd2O3. The Nd2O3 nanoparticles were used as photocatalysts for the degradation of methylene blue under irradiation of sunlight, and the maximum percentage degradation of 74.8% was observed.

A novel electrochemical interdigitated electrodes sensor for limonin quantification and reduction in citrus limetta juice

Limonin, a highly oxygenated triterpene biomolecule of citrus fruits is responsible for delayed bitterness of its juice lowering consumer’s acceptability. Hence, limonin detection is essential for appropriate debittering intrusions. A novel interdigitated capacitive sensor using magnesium silicate-poly vinyl alcohol (MgSiO3.xH2O-PVA) composite has been introduced for quantification of limonin and debittering through selective adsorption of limonin from the citrus limetta juice. The sensor showed high sensitivity of 2.392 µF/ppm and fast response time of ∼6s. The sensor enables both quantification as well as measure debittering of citrus juice showing a reduction in limonin content from 5.77 ppm to 4.29 ppm with an exposure time of 60s to the sensing material making it distinctive in comparison to other methods. The sensor’s results were validated with HPLC analysis. The device is simple, low-cost and reusable which promises easy, on-site and rapid quantification and reduction of limonin content in citrus juices without having toxicity.

Sweet lime peel-, polyvinyl alcohol- and starch-based biodegradable film: preparation and characterization

Sweet lime peel-, polyvinyl alcohol- and starch-based biodegradable film: preparation and characterization

Extraction of Essential Oil Form Sweet Lime Orange Peel: A Comparison Study

This research work was designed to extract essential oil from sweet lime peel (solid waste). The feed material selected for study is sweet lime peel. The disposal of waste product such as peels often has a legal restriction problem and treatment process involved requires higher costs. Transformation of this waste in to useful products could cut global treatment costs. Hence the objective of our experimental work was to convert sweet lime peel in to essential oil which is in huge demand in food, pharma and cosmetic industry. In our experimental work eextraction of essential oil was evaluated and comparison study was made between steam distillation, hydro-distillation, solvent extraction and hydro-steam distillation. Maximum extraction yield of 2.4 % was achieved at 90 min of contact by hydro-distillation. Hydro-distillation method offers advantages in comparison with other three methods in terms of energy saving, cleanliness and reduced waste water. Chemical constituents of essential oil samples were evaluated in terms of qualitative and quantitative analyses by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and physical techniques. The chemical profile includes thirty two components which were identified in the extracts by Gas chromatography-Mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) analysis. The dominant component identified was limonene (65 .2 to 72.8%).

Eco-friendly extraction of Mosambi (<i>Citrus limetta</i>) essential oil from waste fruit peels and its potential use as a larvicidal, insecticidal and antimicrobial agent

Eco-friendly extraction of Mosambi (<i>Citrus limetta</i>) essential oil from waste fruit peels and its potential use as a larvicidal, insecticidal and antimicrobial agent

Eco-friendly extraction of Mosambi (<i>Citrus limetta</i>) essential oil from waste fruit peels and its potential use as a larvicidal, insecticidal and antimicrobial agent

Eco-friendly extraction of Mosambi (<i>Citrus limetta</i>) essential oil from waste fruit peels and its potential use as a larvicidal, insecticidal and antimicrobial agent

Citrus limetta fruit waste management by liquefaction using hydrogen-donor solvent.

The liquefaction of Citrus limetta fruit waste (both pulp and peel) in a hydrogen-donor solvent has not been reported in the literature and authors considered the same as the objective of this work. Thus, results on waste management of this potential fruit wastes by liquefaction in hydrogen-donor methanol solvent at 260 °C temperature, residence time of 30 min, and 1 : 2, 1 : 3 and 1 : 4 biomass-to-solvent ratios were reported in this work. The aim was to achieve biofuels of high quantity and quality from this waste, which would otherwise be disposed of without any value addition. A maximum of 12.5 wt% of biocrude yield was found from Citrus limetta peel biomass, which was higher than that from the thermochemical conversion of other citrus fruit waste biomasses. Biocrude having higher heating value (HHV) of 26.76 MJ kg-1 from Citrus limetta pulp, when the feed biomass pulp-to-solvent ratio was 1 : 4, found to be the best outcome of this study. Biocrude and biochar have also been extremely characterized using several advanced techniques such as Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), and Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), etc. Finally, the novelty of this work is not only obtaining higher yield of biocrude but also better HHV compared to other similar studies in the literature.