Journal
FOOD CHEMISTRY
Volume 134, Issue 4, Pages 1804-1812Publisher
ELSEVIER SCI LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2012.03.088
Keywords
Guarana powder; Polysaccharides; Pectin; Xylan; Antioxidant activity; Paullinia Cupana
Funding
- CNPq
- CAPES
- Fundacao Araucaria
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Guarana is a fruit from the Amazon whose seeds are used to produce guarana powder. Guarana powder is consumed by the population mainly for its stimulant activity. It has been shown that guarana seeds contain low-molar-mass compounds; however, no data have been reported concerning the polysaccharides. In this work, the polysaccharides present in guarana powder were investigated. A pectic fraction and a xylan were isolated and characterised. Antioxidant activity tests were performed with a methanolic extract and the pectic fraction at concentrations of 0.1-10 mg/ml. The methanolic extract exhibited a strong capacity for scavenging DPPH radicals (90.9% at 10 mg/ml). At the same concentration, the polysaccharide showed a DPPH.-scavenging activity of 68.4%. At a higher concentration, the methanolic extract and the polysaccharide exhibited similar hydroxyl radical-scavenging effects (similar to 70%). The results suggest that the polysaccharides present in guarana can contribute to the possible biological effects of guarana powder. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available