Highly prized by consumers, watermelon is rich in water, but also in micronutrients including lycopene, pigment responsible for the red color. It is also a powerful antioxidant which has many virtues including the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. The transformation into nectar of watermelons combined with treatment could cause several modifications including the alteration of coloring. It is in this context that this study focuses on the variation of the lycopene content in nectars. Thus, nectars of 12 ˚Brix and 15 ˚Brix were prepared from three varieties of watermelon (Sugar Baby, Crimson Sweet and Charleston Gray). To study the stability, two pasteurization scales (85˚C/15min and 95˚C/15min) and one sterilization scale (105˚C/15min) were applied to the different nectars produced. The results obtained showed that the Sugar Baby variety is richer in lycopene (24.39 mg•kg −1 ) with a higher pH (5.80). In addition, the study showed, for the Sugar Baby variety, an increase of lycopene with the addition of sugar and the heat treatment (a maximum of 42.83 mg•kg −1 for SbF 12 T 105 ). On the other hand, for the Crimson Sweet and Charleston varieties, the highest rate of lycopene, except the heat-treated ones, are those formulated at 12 ˚B (10.46 mg•kg −1 for CrF 12 T 105 and 18.40 mg•kg −1 for ChF 12 T 105 ). Without any health consequences, the formulation combined with heat treatment would preserve the lycopene content of watermelon nectars.
In this study, the influence of provenance and extraction methods on the physicochemical properties and the antioxidant potential of M. charantia seeds oil were evaluated. The oil is obtained on the one hand by cold extraction with hexane and on the other hand by hot extraction with soxhlet. The results obtained show that the extraction yield is significantly impacted by the extraction methods and the origin of the seeds. In addition, the soxhlet extraction gives a higher oil yield (32.07 ± 0.01). Cold extraction has made it possible to obtain oils with less attenuated physicochemical characteristics. Indeed, the acid numbers are high in the oils extracted by soxhlet (5.92 ± 0.25; 4.25 ± 0.62 and 13.86 ± 0.83) than in those cold extracted with very low peroxide for all the oils obtained. On the other hand, the iodine and refractive indices are high in oils obtained cold (91.58 ± 0.85; 100.74 ± 0.03 and 102.08 ± 0.28) (1.53 ± 0.01; 1.52 ± 0.01 and 1.52 ± 0.01) with low saponification indices. The polyphenol concentrations and the anti-free radical activity are higher with the oils obtained cold (0.086 ± 0.001; 0.08 ± 0.000 and 0.09 ± 0.01 mgEAG/g of oil) and (DPPH) (55.75% ± 1.16%; 55.03% ± 0.72% and 56.35% ± 0.45%). The color parameters (L*, a* and b*) of the different oils extracted also vary depending on the extraction method used. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and correlation analysis were performed on the physicochemical properties and the antioxidant potential of the extracted oils. Therefore, the results suggest cold extraction to obtain a good quality and oxidation resistant oil.
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