Preservation of bioactive compounds and quality parameters of watermelon juice enriched with l-citrulline through short thermal treatment
Registro en:
instname:Universidad de Bogotá Jorge Tadeo Lozano
reponame:Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Bogotá Jorge Tadeo Lozano
Autor
Tarazona-Díaz, Martha P.
Martínez-Sánchez, Ascensión
Aguayo, Encarna
Institución
Resumen
L-citrulline is a nonessential amino acid with demonstrated health benefits for humans, and watermelon is a fruit rich in this amino
acid. The juice industry is developing functional beverages through the enrichment with external bioactive compounds; this kind
of industry uses conventional pasteurization because of its efficiency and simplicity. In this experiment, the effects of pasteurization
(80∘C for 40s or 90s) and storage (4∘C for 30 days) on different parameters were evaluated in a watermelon juice (3.68 g kg−1
of natural L-citrulline) enriched with external L-citrulline (12 g kg−1). Enzymatic activity (peroxidase, pectin methyl esterase, and
polygalacturonase) was inactivated (74 to 89%, 89 to 90%, and 11 to 15%, resp.) with the pasteurization treatment, obtaining the
highest degradation with the longest heating time. According to the rheology study, the juice’s elasticity was mainly affected by type
of heat treatment while its viscosity was more stable and affected by storage time. A reduction in bioactive compounds content,
around 10–16% for lycopene and 19–20% for L-citrulline, was observed after the pasteurization treatments, with a higher decrease
with increased treatment time. Storage time also induced a reduction in lycopene and L-citrulline. The shelf life was limited by
sensorial parameters.