Effect of nitric oxide on pericarp browning of harvested longan fruit in relation to phenolic metabolism

The effects of nitric oxide (NO) on enzymatic browning of harvested longan fruit in relation to phenolic metabolisms were investigated. Fruits were dipped for 5 min in 1 mM sodium nitroprusside (SNP), a nitric oxide donor, then packed in 0.03 mm thick polyethylene bags, and finally stored for 6 days at 28 °C. Changes in pericarp browning and pulp breakdown were evaluated, while total phenol content, activities of phenolic-associated enzymes, polyphenol oxidase (PPO), peroxidase (POD) and phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL), and concentrations of total soluble solids, titratable acidity and ascorbic acid were measured. SNP treatment delayed pericarp browning, inhibited activities of PPO, POD and PAL and maintained a high total phenol content of longan fruit during storage. Furthermore, NO showed a significant inhibition of the in vitro activities of PPO and POD, indicating that the beneficial effect of NO was direct. Moreover, application of NO resulted in a lower pulp breakdown and maintained relatively high levels of total soluble solids and ascorbic acid.     

Fruit quality and physiological responses of litchi cultivar McLean's Red to 1-methylcyclopropene pre-treatment and controlled atmosphere storage conditions

The effect of 1-MCP pre-treatment and two different controlled atmosphere storage conditions (CA-1, 17% O₂ + 6% CO₂; CA-2, 7% O₂ + 3% CO₂) on fruit quality parameters and physiological changes with respect to pericarp browning in ‘McLean's Red’ litchi were investigated. Fruits were pre-treated with 1-MCP (500 nl/l) and held at CA-1 or CA-2 for 21 d at 2 °C and at 90% RH. Stand-alone CA-1 or stand-alone CA-2 and the commercially adopted sulphur dioxide (SO₂) treatment were included in this study for comparison. Of the five treatments 1-MCP + CA-1 was most effective in preventing browning, loss of red colour (colour value a*) of the pericarp, ascorbic acid content; and retaining acceptable SSC/TA and taste. Fruit from 1-MCP + CA-1 showed higher overall acceptance after 21 d storage without any off-flavour according to the sensory panel data.1-MCP + CA-1 reduced the polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and peroxidase (POD) activity, retained membrane integrity and anthocyanin content during storage. Although SO₂ treatment prevents browning it showed negative effects on SSC/TA, taste and membrane integrity. Stand-alone CA-2 condition indicated higher pericarp browning, PPO, POD activity and loss of membrane integrity. Therefore, 1-MCP pre-treatment and CA-1 retains overall fruit quality for up to 21 d.     

Inhibition of browning on the surface of peach slices by short-term exposure to nitric oxide and ascorbic acid

The effect of 0.2% ascorbic acid (AA), 5 μM nitric oxide (NO), and the simultaneous use of 0.2% AA and 5 μM NO solutions on inhibiting surface browning of fresh-cut peach slices stored at 10 °C and RH 95% was investigated. The browning index, relative leakage rate, microstructure, total phenol content, and activity of the phenol metabolism-associated enzymes phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL), polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and peroxidase (POD) were evaluated. The results indicate that treatment with 0.2% AA, 5 μM NO and simultaneous use of 0.2% AA and 5 μM NO resulted in higher total phenol content, inhibition of PPO and POD activity, reduced membrane permeability and protection of cell microstructure to maintain compartmentation between enzymes and their substrates. In addition, NO increased PAL activity. The causes of inhibition in the browning of peach slices by NO are discussed.     

Antioxidant activities and contents of polyphenol oxidase substrates from pericarp tissues of litchi fruit

The experiments were performed to extract and purify substrates for polyphenol oxidase (PPO) from pericarp tissue of postharvest litchi fruit. Two purified PPO substrates were identified as (−)-epicatechin and procyanidin A2. The antioxidant properties of two PPO substrates were further evaluated in the present study. Variation in the content of the major substrate (−)-epicatechin of litchi fruit during storage at 25 °C was analysed using the HPLC-UV method. The results showed that (−)-epicatechin exhibited stronger antioxidant capability than procyanidin A2, in terms of reducing power and scavenging activities of DPPH radical, hydroxyl radical and superoxide radical. Furthermore, (−)-epicatechin content in pericarp tissue tended to decrease with increasing skin browning index of litchi fruit during storage at 25 °C. Thus, these two compounds can be used as potential antioxidants in litchi waste and the fresh pericarp tissue of litchi fruit exhibited a better utilisation value.     

Influence of oxidative browning inhibitors and isolation techniques on sweet potato protein recovery and composition

Effects of oxidative browning inhibitors on sweet potato protein (SPP) recovery and quality were studied. Oxidative browning inhibitors successfully decreased sweet potato oxidative browning, but reduced both SPP extractability and recovery. Ultrafiltration/diafiltration processed sweet potato (UDSP) protein (at pH 4, 6 and 7) showed significantly (p < 0.05) higher yield, purity, solubility, thermal stability and amino acid constituents than that of isoelectrically precipitated sweet potato (IPSP) protein (at pH 4). The yield of UDSP proteins was more than twice that of IPSP protein. Denaturation temperature (T_d), enthalpy change (ΔH) and solubility (at pH 3 and 8) of UDSP proteins were in the ranges 82.89–90.29 °C, 6.34–11.35 (J/g) and 71.4–94.2%, respectively, while that of IPSP protein were 85.27 °C, 2.35 (J/g) 31.2% and 55.5%, respectively. Ratio of SPP essential amino acid to the total amino acid ratio ranged from 0.49 to 0.51. SPP in vitro digestibility and digestibility-corrected amino acid score (PDCAAS) ranged 70–80.7% and 44.79–51.08%, respectively.     

Light exposure inhibiting tissue browning and improving antioxidant capacity of fresh-cut celery (Apium graveolens var. dulce)

Fresh-cut celery is perishable and susceptible to tissue browning during storage. In this study, the effect of continuous light exposure (2000 lux) on browning related enzyme activity of fresh-cut celery was investigated during 8 d storage at 7 °C using darkness (0.2 lux) as control. Light exposure significantly suppressed polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and peroxidase (POD) activities, and subsequently decreased soluble quinone accumulation and browning index (BI) evolution during storage. In addition, phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL) activity, total phenol (TP) content, and antioxidant capacity (AC) values were all higher when the fresh-cut celery samples were exposed to light than in darkness during storage. A significant positive correlation between TP and AC was observed at both light (R = 0.884, P < 0.01) and dark (R = 0.705, P < 0.01) conditions.     

Exogenous salicylic acid inhibits browning of fresh-cut Chinese water chestnut

The potential usage of salicylic acid (SA) as a powerful anti-browning agent in fresh-cut Chinese water chestnut (CWC) was investigated. The fresh-cut CWC were dipped for 1 min in solutions of 0, 1, 2 or 4 mM SA, then placed in trays over-wrapped with plastic films, and finally stored at 4 °C. Changes in color, eating quality, and disease incidence were evaluated, while activities of phenol-associated enzymes, polyphenol oxidase (PPO), peroxidase (POD) and phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL), and concentrations of total soluble solid, titratable acidity and ascorbic acid were measured. SA treatment delayed discoloration, maintained eating quality with higher content of the quality attributers, and reduced activities of or delayed the increases in activities of PPO, POD and PAL in fresh-cut CWC. However, SA had no significant inhibition of the activities of PPO and POD in an in vitro test, indicating that the beneficial effect of SA was indirect. Further research is needed to elucidate the inhibition of the surface browning of the fresh-cut CWC by SA.     

Peroxidase and polyphenol oxidase thermal inactivation by microwaves in green coconut water simulated solutions

Enzymes from coconut water such as peroxidase (POD) and polyphenol oxidase (PPO) when in contact with oxygen begin reactions causing nutritional and color losses. Solutions simulating the chemical constituents of coconut water were submitted to a batch process in a microwave oven. PPO and POD inactivation data could be characterized by: PPO/water D_93 °C=16.5 s (z=35.5 °C); PPO/sugars D_91 °C=18 s (z=33°C); POD/water D_91.5 °C=44 s (z=24 °C) and POD/sugars D_92 °C=20.5 s (z=19.5 °C). The contact between salts and enzymes promoted a drastic reduction of the initial activity. After the incidence of microwave energy at temperatures above 90 °C, enzymes activity was not detected. These results can indicate an adequate choice of temperature conditions to inactivate coconut water enzymes. The knowledge of how green coconut water constituents influence POD and PPO activity will supply useful information about microwave processing of coconut water.     

Polyphenol oxidase activity,phenolic acid composition and browning in cashew apple (Anacardium occidentale, L.) after processing

This study describes the extraction and characterisation of cashew apple polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and the effect of wounding on cashew apple phenolic acid composition, PPO activity and fruit browning. Purification factor was 59 at 95% (NH₄)₂SO₄ saturation. For PPO activity, the optimal substrate was catechol and the optimum pH was 6.5. PPO K_m and V_max values were 18.8 mM and 13.6 U min⁻¹ ml⁻¹, respectively. Ascorbic acid, citric acid, sodium sulphite and sodium metabisulphite decreased PPO activity, while sodium chloride increased PPO activity. Wounding at 2 °C and 27 °C for 24 h increased PPO activity but storage at 40 °C reduced PPO activity. Gallic acid, protocatechuic acid and cinnamic acid (free and conjugate) were identified in cashew apple juice. Cutting and subsequent storage at 40 °C hydrolysed cinnamic acid. 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural content in cashew apple juice increased after injury and storage at higher temperatures, indicating non-enzymatic browning.     

Steam blanching effect on polyphenoloxidase,peroxidase and colour of mango (Mangifera indica L.) slices

The heat stability of peroxidase (POD) and polyphenoloxidase (PPO) was investigated in mango (Mangifera indica L.) slices, and the relative colour was studied after different steam blanching times. There was complete inactivation after 5 min for POD and 7 min for PPO. Steam blanching of 3 min gave residual activity of 2.85% and 8.33% for PPO and POD, respectively, and when compared with samples blanched for 5 min had no effect on colour over 20 days of storage. Correlation was found between activities of PPO, POD and colour change over 20 days. After 7 min steam blanching the browning index was stable but less than at 3 and 5 min because non-enzymic browning had occurred. This research suggests that yellowness (b) and lightness (L) values contribute positively to the browning index (BI), compared to redness (a).     

Maintaining the quality of sugarcane juice with blanching and ascorbic acid

The physicochemical changes in fresh sugarcane juice stored at 10 °C were studied by determining juice yield, color, reducing sugar, titratable acidity, viscosity, pH, polyphenol oxidase (PPO), sucrose neutral invertase (SNI) and total microbial count. Results showed that blanching of stems before squeezing effectively prevented degreening and/or browning, and reduced activities of PPO and SNI in fresh sugarcane juice. Added ascorbic acid delayed the increase of reducing sugar, titratable acidity, viscosity and total microbial count, and also prevented degreening and/or browning with reduced PPO and SNI activities in fresh sugarcane juice during storage. Addition of 0.1% ascorbic acid seemed to be more effective than blanching of sugarcane stems, and was able to maintain the quality of fresh sugarcane juice for up to 5 days at 10 °C. Deterioration of fresh sugarcane juice was demonstrated as a rapid increase of titratable acidity and viscosity with a obvious browning.     

Alleviation of chilling injury and browning of postharvest bamboo shoot by salicylic acid treatment

The effects of salicylic acid (SA) treatment on chilling injury, disease incidence, electrolyte leakage (EL), flesh browning index, malondialdehyde (MDA) and total phenolic content, phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and peroxidase (POD) activities, and polyamine (PA) content of bamboo shoot, during storage at 1 °C for 50 days, were examined. Chilling injury and disease incidence, EL, MDA content of control shoot increased progressively. Chilling injury promoted PAL, PPO and POD activities, which are associated with shoot total phenolic content and flesh browning index increase. Chilling injury was significantly positively correlated with putrescine (Put) or spermidine (Spd) contents. Suppression of chilling injury by SA treatment was associated with reducing EL, MDA and total phenolic content, retarding activities of PAL, PPO and POD, and promoting PA accumulation. The present findings suggest that SA treatment could be used commercially to control chilling injury in bamboo shoot during cold storage.     

Effect of pH on non-enzymatic browning reaction during γ-irradiation processing using sugar and sugar–glycine solutions

Effects of pH on the non-enzymatic browning reaction caused by γ-irradiation processing were investigated. The brown colour development of irradiated sugar–glycine solutions was greater in a buffer system than in deionized distilled water (DDW) with higher pH. Although browning of irradiated sugar solution without glycine was highly increased was in alkaline buffer, no browning was developed in DDW. The maximum browning of the solutions of sugar and sugar–glycine were observed at pH 10 and pH 8, respectively. The browning intensity was in the following order: sucrose ? fructose > glucose. Non-constant pH was observed in DDW (dropped pH between 1.58 and 2.03 units); however, the use of buffers was partially effective in keeping pH constant (pH dropped between 0.03 and 0.56 units). When the irradiated solutions of sugar with and without glycine were analyzed using reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection (HPLC-DAD), three peaks were separated at 3.37 ± 0.04, 4.60 ± 0.02, and 2.53 ± 0.26 min, and the λ_max values of these peaks were the range 259–288 nm. The sum of the areas of these peaks at 260 nm increased with increasing pH. The results of this study indicated that conditions of the system, such as pH and media, can influence the non-enzymatic browning reaction during γ-irradiation.     

Effects of conventional and multistage drying processing on non-enzymatic browning in tomato

The effect of different drying temperatures on the development of non-enzymatic browning in tomato was studied. In particular, the influence of product moisture and temperature on the colour change during drying at various temperatures in the range of 50–90 °С was investigated. The extent of browning was evaluated spectrophotometrically as tomato extracts absorbance at 420 nm. As a result of analysis of experimental data, a multistage drying process of tomato was developed. In this method, drying was realized at decreasing air temperature, arranged such, that the temperature inside the fruit did not exceed acceptable level of 55 °С. Higher product quality and shorter drying time in comparison with the conventional drying at constant air conditions were observed.     

Comparison of the effects of sucrose and hexose on furfural formation and browning in cookies baked at different temperatures

The influence of the type of sugar and baking temperature on sugar degradation, hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) formation and browning was studied in model cookies. The baking process was characterised by the temperature in the cookie and the water content and activity. A reference browning was selected to compare the differently processed cookies. The accumulation of HMF was modelled at three temperatures for three formulas (sucrose (S-CK), glucose (G-CK) or fructose (F-CK)). HMF started to accumulate at a_w between 0.5 and 0.7 depending on the temperature and followed a first order kinetic, highly dependent on the baking temperature and type of sugar. Cookies baked at 200 °C accumulated 10–100 times less HMF than those baked at higher temperatures. Below 250 °C, S-CK produced less HMF than G- or F-CK, but the inverse was observed at 300 °C.     

Use of response surface methodology to study the combined effects of UV-C and thermal processing on vegetable oxidative enzymes

The combined thermal (25–65 °C) and ultraviolet processing (UV-C) effects on lipoxygenase (LOX), peroxidase (POD) and polyphenoloxidase (PPO) at different pH values (4.0–7.0) were studied using a central composite design. An initial screening design revealed that all factors had a significant effect on enzymatic activity except wavelength which showed a negligible effect. A synergistic effect was found between temperature and UV exposure time for POD and PPO and between pH and exposure time for LOX. LOX enzyme was affected by acidic conditions. POD was UV-C labile whereas PPO was the most UV-C resistant enzyme but was thermolabile. Second-order polynomial equations indicated that enzyme activities were inactivated after exposure to 58.2 mJ/cm² UV at 60 °C or higher temperatures at any pH condition. Combination of UV and thermal processing allowed the use of low energy/doses to obtain complete enzymatic inactivation. This study may serve as a basis to design UV-C processes for the inactivation of enzymes in liquid matrices.     

Non-enzymatic browning kinetics analysed through water–solids interactions and water mobility in dehydrated potato

Non-enzymatic browning (NEB) development was studied in dehydrated potato at 70 °C. It was related to the macroscopic and molecular properties and to water–solid interactions over a wide range of water activities. Time resolved ¹H NMR, thermal transitions and water sorption isotherms were evaluated. Although non-enzymatic browning could be detected in the glassy state; colour development was higher in the supercooled state. The reaction rate increased up to a water content of 26 g/100 g of solids (a_w = 0.84) and then decreased at higher water contents, concomitantly with the increase of water proton mobility. The joint analyses of NEB kinetics, water sorption isotherm and proton relaxation behaviour made it evident that the point at which the reaction rate decreased, after a maximum value, could be related to the appearance of highly mobile water. The results obtained in this work indicate that the prediction of chemical reaction kinetics can be performed through the integrated analysis of water sorption, water and solids mobility and the physical state of the matrix.     

Thermal inactivation of polyphenoloxidase in pineapple puree

Prevention of browning in pineapple puree by thermal inactivation of enzyme, Polyphenoloxisase (PPO), was examined between 40 and 90 °C and in relation to exposure time. The amount of inactivation was measured as a function of time and temperature under isothermal conditions. Reaction rate constant and activation energy (E_a) as well as Decimal reduction time (D) and z-value of thermal inactivation, were determined. The rate of inactivation varied with temperatures and follows a logarithmic law. Kinetic studies showed that the thermal inactivation (40-90 °C) of the PPO followed first-order kinetics.     

Time Course of PPO-Related Browning of Yams

The time course of polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity and tissue browning was investigated in five Dioscorea species. In three of the yam species, 86% of the browning was associated with the peak of PPO activity. In D dumentorum and D rotundata, only 9 and 40%, respectively, of browning was PPO-related, while most of the tissue browning occurred after PPO activity had declined to the control value. The browning incidence was temperature-dependent such that the optimal temperature for PPO activity (30°C) also coincided with that of maximal browning in all the yam species expect in D dumentorum. Classical inhibitors of PPO prevented the browning in tissues where the enzymic mechanism predominated while failing to reduce browning in D dumentorum and D rotundata where most of tissue browning was not enzyme associated. The results put the incidence of yam discolouration in proper perspective in terms of the timescale of PPO and non-PPO-catalysed discolouration.     

Effect of combined high pressure and thermal treatment on kiwifruit peroxidase

The effects of high pressure and heat treatments on peroxidase (POD) activity in kiwifruit were investigated. Pressure levels ranging from 200 to 600 MPa and temperatures varying from 10 to 50 °C were applied for up to 30 min. Assays were carried out on crude peroxidase in kiwifruit juice and on partially purified peroxidase in a model system. Pressures higher than 400 MPa could be combined with mild heat (?50 °C) to accelerate enzyme inactivation. Prolongation of the exposure time had no great effect after the first 15 min. The slope of POD in kiwifruit juice at 30 °C was slightly decreased compared with that in a model system. Furthermore, the optimum pH for POD was 6.0–8.5. The presence of POD isoenzymes and their difference in resistance to pressure were thought to be responsible for the final residual activity observed in this study.