Effects of Pretreatments on Patulin Removal from Apple Juices Using Lactobacilli: Binding Stability in Simulated Gastrointestinal Condition and Modeling

Recently, researchers have reported the presence of patulin as a mycotoxin in commercial apple products, especially apple juices. The aim of this study was to assess adsorption of patulin from artificially contaminated apple juice using two lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains ofLactobacillus acidophilusATCC 4356 andLactobacillus plantarumATCC 8014. Furthermore, effects of five physical and chemical pretreatments on the patulin adsorption were investigated. Results demonstrated that patulin adsorption abilities of both strains increased with NaOH pretreatment but decreased after autoclaving. The NaOH-treatedL. plantarumATCC 8014 showed the best removal rate (59.74%) after 48 h of refrigerated storage, compared with the NaOH-treatedL. acidophilusATCC 4356 (52.36%). Moreover, stability of the LAB-patulin complex was assessed in simulated gastrointestinal tract conditions and a low quantity of patulin was released into the solution. The patulin adsorption process by NaOH-treatedL. plantarumATCC 8014 followed Freundlich isotherm model and pseudo-second-order kinetic model. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy showed that polysaccharide and protein components of theL. plantarumATCC 8014 cell wall played key roles in patulin adsorption. The major functional groups of the cell wall that were involved in adsorbing patulin included -OH/-NH, -CH2, C=O, and C-O groups. The current results suggest that NaOH-treatedL. plantarumATCC 8014 cells include the potential to detoxify patulin-contaminated apple juices.

Automated summary

Recent research has shown that the potential of NaOH-treated Lactobacillus plantarum ATCC 8014 cells in detoxifying patulin-contaminated apple juices is significant. The stability of the LAB-patulin complex was assessed under simulated gastrointestinal conditions, showing promising results.