Effect of electron beam irradiation on phytochemical composition, lipase activity and fatty acid of quinoa

Electron beam irradiation (EBI) is a new steriNational Engineering Laboratory for Cereal Fermentation Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, 214122, Chinalization technology, and research on how EBI can affect the chemical components of quinoa is limited. Therefore, this study focused on the changes in phytochemical composition, total bacteria count, lipase activity, and fatty acid of quinoa after EBI (0, 1, 2, 4, and 8 kGy). Results showed that EBI could inhibit the increase in total bacterial amount, lipase activity, and free fatty acid content during storage. The saponin content in quinoa did not change after EBI, while the phytic acid content decreased by 19% at 8 kGy. Total phenolic content (TPC) of free phenolics (FPs) significantly (p < 0.05) increased by 33% at 8 kGy. Total flavonoid content (TFC) of acid-hydrolysable phenolics (AHPs)significantly (p 0.05) decreased by 24% at 4 kGy. TFC in AHP and TFC in base-hydrolysable phenolics (BHPs) did not show significant (p 0.05) changes, while TPC in BHP and TFC in FP improved. The content of polyunsaturated fatty acids increased by 3% at 1 kGy. The value of 0)3/0)6 (0.21) increased by 5% after EBI. The results indicated that EBI has strong potential for application in the quinoa industry without damaging the phytochemicals and fatty acid composition.

Automated summary

The study found that EBI could inhibit the increase in total bacterial amount, lipase activity, and free fatty acid content during storage of quinoa. While saponin content did not change after EBI, phytic acid content decreased and total phenolic and flavonoid content showed improvement in certain aspects.