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RESEARCH ARTICLE
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Carob (Ceratonia siliqua L.) (pod, pulp, seed) flours and pulp mucilage
affect kefir quality and antioxidant capacity during storage
Departement des Sciences Alimentaires, Facult des Sciences de la Nature et de la Vie, Universit de Bejaia, 06000 Bejaia,
Algrie
Formerly with the National Bioproducts and Bioprocesses Program, Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre, Agriculture and AgriFood Canada, Summerland, BC, Canada V0H 1Z0
3
Food Science and Nutrition Program, Chemistry Department, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario,
Canada, K1S 5B6
Abstract:
Carob (pod, pulp, seed) flours and crude pulp mucilage supplementation were investigated
for their effects on kefir properties and antioxidant activity during 4 weeks cold (4 C) storage. Carob
flours differed in composition, mucilage yield, antioxidant activity and phenolic components analyzed by
HPLC. Bacterial count increased during the first week of kefir storage with carob supplementation
stimulating bacterial growth similar to inulin. Bacterial viability and titratable acidity of carob
supplemented kefir increased, whereas pH decreased during storage. The antioxidant activity of kefirs
generally increased during storage attaining maximum level at 14 days with the supplemented kefirs
exhibiting higher activity compared to the control plain kefir.
Keywords Ceratonia siliqua L., mucilage, kefir, bacterial growth, prebiotic, antioxidant activity.
I.
INTRODUCTION
The carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua L.) pod
was a traditional food that declined in consumption
in the last decades in the Mediterranean countries.
However, consumption of manufactured products
from carob has increased due to extensive research
on processing, utilization and health benefits of the
pod and/or its components. The seed, an industrial
source of gum (locust bean gum-LBG), can be
refined by calibrated grinding into seed flour listed
in the European food additives (Durazzo et al.
2014). The seedless pod (pulp) ground into flour is
used as a chocolate or cocoa substitute. Many
health benefits have been attributed to carob pod,
pulp and/or its fiber constituent. For example, the
carob pulp powder has been recommended in the
diet regimen of obese/overweight, hyperlipidemic
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the range (27-33%) of locust bean gum extracted Pyrogallol, rutin, protocatecuic and p-hydroxy
from carob seed from various regions of Tunisia benzoic acids were predominant in the seed
(Bouzouita et al. 2007). Mucilage from the pod did accounting for 20.8, 17.1, 12.1 and 10.9% of the
not differ significantly in phenolic content and total phenolic compound, respectively. The seed
antioxidant activity than those from the pulp. The pyragallol contributed over twice the amount
high phenolic content of the seed mucilage was (9.12%) recently reported for aqueous seed extract
reflected in its high ORAC value.
from Tunisian carob (Rtibi et al. 2015b). Phenolic
Pearson correlation revealed that ash content acids constituted 72, 65 and 61%, whereas
was positively associated with protein content and flavonoids accounted for 28, 35 and 39% of the
inversely related to total carbohydrate content (r = total phenolic compounds for the pulp, pod and
0.962 and -0.976, respectively; P < 0.0001, n = 9). seed, respectively (Table 2).
This indicated that protein and carbohydrate Microbial Analyses
contents were inversely related (r = 0.995; P <
The polynomial equations (Y = 0.0001). Antioxidant activity was positively (r = 0.0033x2+0.1023x+7.6059, r2 = 0.939; and Y = 0.971) correlated with ash and protein content and 0.0032x2+0.1033x+7.2959, r2 = 0.8033) best
negatively (r = -0.975) associated with carbohydrate described the total microbial evolution of the
content (P < 0.0001). Total phenolics and supplemented (inulin; K+IN) and control kefir (K),
antioxidant activity of mucilage were also inversely respectively (Figure 1) during 28 days storage.
associated with carbohydrate content (r = -0.917; P Bacterial count (7.3 7.5 log cfu/mL) on day 1 was
= 0.0005 and -0.995; P < 0.0001, respectively).
significantly (P < 0.001) higher for supplemented
HPLC determination of carob pod, pulp and kefir compared to the control plain kefir.
Maximum/optimal increase (7.9 10.3%) in
seed
Twenty one phenolic compounds were bacterial count occurred on day 7 compared to day
identified in carob extracts, with very low levels (< 1, indicating significant bacterial growth in all kefir
0.15 mg/g) of apigenin, coumaric and vanillic acids samples. The increase in bacterial count was
(Table 2). Vanillic acid was undetected in the pulp, minimal (0.1 2.3%) from day 7 to 14 followed
while chlorogenic acid and apigenin were absent in thereafter by reduction in bacterial count to the end
the seeds. The seed generally had the highest of the storage period. The linear decrease in
content (17.23 mg/g) of phenolic components bacterial count (day 14 28) of the kefir samples
analyzed by HPLC except for chlorogenic, gallic was in the following order: control (K) > K+MP >
and syringic acids, quercetin, kaempherol and K+PD = K+SD = K+P > K+IN. Carob pod, seed,
apigenin. These phenolic compounds were most pulp and crude pulp mucilage addition to kefir
abundant in the pod with a total of 10.53 mg/g stimulated bacterial growth and activity similar to
phenolic compounds. The pulp contained the least inulin supplementation suggesting similar prebiotic
amount of phenolic compounds (8.62 mg/g) except activity. Inulin addition maximally increased total
chlorogenic, protocatecuic and gallic acids, catechin, bacterial counts probably due to improved survival
myrecetin and apigenin. The gallic acid content of of acetic acid bacteria during kefir storage
the pod was similar to those reported earlier (1.2 (Montanuci et al. 2012). A total bacterial count by
mg/g) (Corsi et al. 2002), whereas the gallic and the 28th day was similar for K+PD and K+SD (8.1
caffeic acid contents of the pulp were within the log cfu/mL) and for K+MP and K+IN (7.9 log cfu/
range of Portuguese carob cultivars (Custdio et al. mL). During refrigerated storage, total bacterial
2011).
count of kefir was between 7.3 and 8.4 log cfu/ mL.
Chlorogenic acid, gallic acid and rutin (23.9, Total Titratable Acidity (%TTA) and pH
15.4 and 12% for the pulp and 20.7, 12.7 and 15.4 %
Lactic acid concentration, a measure of total
of the pod total phenolics) comprised the major titratable acidity, ranged from 0.75 to 0.87% at day
phenolic compounds accounting for 51.3 and 48.8% 1 and did not differ significantly among kefirs
of the total pulp and pod phenolics, respectively. (Table 3). Furthermore, lactic acid concentration of
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Quercetin
Quercetin 3glucoside
Rutin
0.51c
0.80a
0.04c
1.03c
0.67b
0.32b
1.62b
1.01a
2.94a
Means in a row followed by the same letter are not significantly different by Duncans multiple range test
at 5% level.
9
Log cfu/mL
8
7
K+Pd
K+P
K+SD
K+IN
K+MP
1
0
14
21
28
Poly. (K)
Poly. (K+IN)
Figure 1 Total microbial evolution of the supplemented (inulin; K+IN) and control kefir (K) during 28
days storage.
Table 3 Total titratable acid (TTA) of different kefir formulations during 28 days storage at 4C
Day
K
K+P
K+Pd
K+SD
K+IN
K+MP
1
0.81a
0.81a
0.87a
0.75a
0.81a
0.78a
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7
0.48c
0.66b
0.69b
0.78a
0.63b
0.63b
14
0.84abc
0.75cd
0.72d
0.93a
0.87ab
0.81bcd
21
0.87b
0.81bc
0.75c
1.05a
0.84bc
0.84bc
28
0.90b
0.87b
0.90b
1.11a
0.90b
0.84b
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Means in a column followed by the same letter are not significantly different by Duncans multiple range
test at the 5% level. K, kefir type B-heterofermentative culture; P, carob pulp; Pd, carob pod; SD, carob
seed; IN, inulin; MP, carob pulp crude mucilage.
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