Improving the extraction yield of essential oil from Pimenta dioica (L.) Merr. using Aspergillus niger ATCC 1004 enzyme blend.

The objective of this work was to optimize the application of an enzymatic blend produced by Aspergillus niger ATCC 1004 on the Pimenta dioica fruits for essential oil extraction. The enzyme blend was obtained from the fermentation of cocoa bean shells, an agro-industrial residue. The effects of the enzymatic pre-treatment on the extraction yield, the chemical composition of the oil through gas chromatography, and the fruit structure through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were assessed. A Doehlert design was used to optimize the process conditions, resulting in an extraction with 117 mL of enzyme during 77 min, which increased the extraction yield by 387.5%. The chemical composition was not altered, which proves that the enzyme blend preserves the quality of the essential oil extracted. The content of eugenol (70%), the major compound in the P. dioica essential oil, had a great increase in its concentration (560%). The enzyme activity analyses showed the presence of endoglucanase (0.4 U/mL), exoglucanase (0.25 U/mL), ß-glucosidase (0.19 U/mL), and invertase (135.08 U/mL). The microscopy analyses revealed changes in the morphology of fruit surface due to the enzymatic action. These results demonstrate the great potential of using enzyme blends produced by filamentous fungi from agro-industrial residues for the essential oils extraction of interest for the pharmaceutical and food industries.

The improvement of guava (Psidium guajava) juice quality using crude multi-enzymatic extracts obtained from yeasts.

Guava juice is cloudy and viscous, which hinders filtration, decreases yield, and causes the loss of quality after its processing and during storage. This study aimed to evaluate enzymatic treatment effects using crude multi-enzymatic extracts (CME) obtained from Rhodotorula mucilaginosa, Rhodotorula orizycola, and Pseudozyma sp. produced by submerse fermentation in the extraction of juice guava. Mixtures of 100 ml of guava pulp and multi-enzymatic extracts proposed by Doehlert planning were incubated under constant agitation at 150 rpm and 50°C, and a Doehlert design was applied as a multivariate optimization strategy. The optimal conditions using the multi-enzymatic extract were: 0.4% (v/v) of CME for 131 min for the multi-enzymatic treatment using Pseudozyma sp.; 3.0% (v/v) of CME for 154 min using the R. mucilaginosa CME; and 5.0% (v/v) of CME for 90 min using R. oryzicola. The maximum viscosity reduction values for the juices treated with the CME of yeasts were 10.33%, 86.38%, and 13.33% for the juices treated with the CME of Pseudozyma sp., R. mucilaginosa, and R. orizycola, respectively. The physical-chemical properties were improved after treatment with CMEs, yielding a reduction of clarity, increase of total soluble solids and reducing sugars, and decreasing the acidity (pH) for all treatments with enzymatic extracts of all strains. The yeasts studied showed a potential for CME production to be applied to juice, improving the quality of the juice, and R. mucilaginosa was the most prominent yeast due to most significant reduction of viscosity in guava juice.

Application crude multienzyme extract from Aspergillus niger as a pretreatment for the extraction of essential oil from Croton argyrophyllus leaves.

Leaves of Croton argyrophyllus contain essential oil with promising active components for the development of drugs and botanical insecticides. In this study, we evaluated the enzymatic pretreatment process to increase the extraction of essential oil from fresh and dried leaves of C. argyrophyllus. Pretreatment was carried out using a crude multienzymatic extract obtained via solid-state fermentation of forage palm by Aspergillus niger, and the extraction was performed by hydrodistillation. A Doehlert matrix was used to optimize the enzymatic pretreatment variables temperature and enzymatic extract. The effect of pretreatment time was also investigated. At optimum experimental conditions, 41.34°C, 140 min, and 130.73 mL of enzyme in 369.27 mL of water, the essential oil yield from fresh leaves subjected to enzymatic pretreatment increased by 9.35% and that from dry leaves by 6.77%. Based on chromatographic analysis (GC-MS), no compound was degraded in the extraction process. Micromorphological analysis confirmed the rupture of the glandular trichomes, favoring essential oil release. Therefore, enzymatic pretreatment associated with hydrodistillation increased the essential oil yield and is a promising application to obtain essential oil for therapeutic purposes without altering its composition.

Storage stability of the phenolic compounds, color and antioxidant activity of jambolan juice powder obtained by foam mat drying.

Jambolan (Syzigium cumini (L.) Skeels) stands out among the Brazilian fruits that are rich in bioactive compounds with potential for the production of dehydrated product. Therefore, jambolan juice powder was produced by foam mat drying method and stored for 150 days at three temperatures (4, 25, 35 °C). The effect of time, temperature and the interaction of these two factors on the qualitative and quantitative profile of phenolic compounds were determined after analysis of the powders by using HPLC-DAD-ESI-MSn. For the powders submitted to the different study condition, the concentration of flavonols did not differ from the control sample, and only a small reduction in the anthocyanins concentrations was seen (7-9%), only being significantly affected by storage time. Additionally, the molar profiles of these compounds were influenced more by time than storage temperature, however none of the compounds identified was totally degraded. The percentages of antioxidant activity oscillated during the storage time, however, without major losses after 150 days at all storage temperatures. The results showed that jambolan juice powder is very stable in terms of anthocyanins and flavonols concentrations at all three temperatures of the storage. This and the attractive color (purplish-red) make it a potential ingredient to enrich differentiated foods.

Aproveitamento da semente da jaca para a obtenção de endoglucanase a partir de Aspergillus níger por fermentação em estado sólido / The use of jackfruit seed for obtainment of endoglucanases from Aspergillus níger for fermentation in solid state

A jaca é alimento consumido por brasileiros sob diferentes formas: in natura, doces, conservas, dentre outros. Os resíduos derivados (sementes) desses produtos são ricos em nutrientes tais como proteínas, fibras, sais minerais e ácidos graxos podendo ser utilizados em diferentes alimentos como componentes enriquecedores, minimizando a poluição ambiental. O presente trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar o efeito da variação do teor de água (40%, 50% e 60%), do tempo de fermentação (24h, 48h, 72h e 96h) e da temperatura (25 °C, 30 °C e 35 °C), na produção de endoglucanase do fungo Aspergillus niger por fermentação em estado sólido, utilizando semente de jaca como substrato. As fermentações ocorreram em estufa bacteriológica, a endoglucanase foi quantificada como carboximetilcelulase utilizando CMC como substrato e o teor de proteína solúvel foi determinado pelo método de Bradford. O melhor resultado, atividade específica de 138,45 (U/mg), foi obtido nas condições de fermentação realizada com 60% do teor de água a 35 °C no tempo de 72h. A partir dos resultados obtidos foi possível concluir que a temperatura de fermentação foi o principal fator que afetou a produção da CMCase pelo Aspergillus niger a partir do semente de jaca.

Jackfruit is a kind of food eaten by many Brazilians in different ways: fresh, sweets, conserves, among others. The residue (seeds) derived from these products is rich in nutrients such as proteins, fibers, mineral salts and fatty acids, and it can be used in different kinds of food as enriching compounds, minimizing environmental pollution. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of water percentage variation (40, 50, and 60%), time of fermentation (24, 48, 72, and 96 hours), and temperature (25, 30, and 35ºC) in endoglucanases production for Aspergillus niger fungus, through fermentation in solid state, having jackfruit seed as substratum. The fermentations took place in bacteriological greenhouse; endoglucanases was quantified as carboximetil-cellulose using CMC as substratum, and the percentage of solvable protein was determined by Bradford method. The best result, specific activity 138,45 (U/mg), was obtained at the conditions of fermentation realized with 60% of water percentage, at 35ºC, in 72 hours. Departing from results, it was possible to conclude that the temperature of fermentation was the main coefficient to affect the production of CMCase by Aspergillus niger from jackfruit seed.