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Abstract
This work examined the effect of extraction regime (hot water vs. simulated in vitro gastrointestinal digestion) and postharvest storage on the chemical composition, molecular weight, and bioactive properties of polysaccharides obtained from sweet cherries (Lapins and Staccato varieties) and apples (Gala and Fuji varieties). The yields of the polysaccharides isolated from cherries and apples ranged from 0.2 to 2.4% on a dry weight fruit basis. All of the isolated polysaccharides contained protein, phenolic compounds, and uronic acid. All polysaccharides contained the sugar monomers: rhamnose, arabinose, xylose, mannose, galactose, and glucose. Also, all of the polysaccharides obtained using the different extraction regimes were shown to possess antioxidant activity as determined with the ferric reducing antioxidant power and the 2,2-azinobis (3-ethyl-benzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) radical scavenging assays. Only the polysaccharides isolated from the cherry and apples after simulated in vitro gastrointestinal digestion showed appreciable α-glucosidase inhibition activity, with polysaccharides obtained from Staccato cherries showing nearly 90% of the inhibition of α-glucosidase as achieved with the positive control acarbose. This work shows that bioactive polysaccharides are available and/or can be isolated during digestion which supports the concept that fruit polysaccharides play a role in enhancing human health.
Public Interest Statement
This work strived demonstrate whether the health benefits associated with dietary consumption of fruits can be attributed to polysaccharides, and whether physiologically active polysaccharides can be isolated during digestion and thereby provide health- promoting effects. This work evaluated potential structure-dependent differences in bioactivity as influenced by fruit type, variety, storage, and extraction regime. The information generated from this type of study supports the concept that polysaccharides present in fruit may play a role in the health benefits associated with the consumption of fruits.
Competing interests
The authors declare no competing interest.
Acknowledgment
Authors are grateful for the technical assistance of Stanley Chan.
Additional information
Funding
Notes on contributors
Kelly A. Ross
Kelly A. Ross joined as a research scientist in Agriculture and Agri-Food, Canada in October 2008 . She received her PhD from the Department of Food Science at Purdue University. Prior to joining AAFC, at the Department of Food Science and the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at the University of Manitoba, she performed postdoctoral research evaluating chemical components of pulses and determining how storage and processing conditions affected chemical changes and their influence on product quality. Her research is currently focused on isolating and characterizing the polysaccharides present in tree fruits, such as cherries and apples along with berries and ginseng. Ongoing work is concerned with defining the relationships between the chemical composition, and structure of the polysaccharides and bioactivities. Her research is striving to provide fundamental knowledge of production and processing practices that affect the nutritional attributes of foods, including impact of food structure on nutrient release (i.e. the importance of bioaccessability).