A laboratory-scale model cocoa fermentation using dried, unfermented beans and artificial pulp can simulate the microbial and chemical changes of on-farm cocoa fermentation

Lee, Andrew H.; Neilson, Andrew P.; O’Keefe, Sean F.; Ogejo, Jactone Arogo; Huang, Haibo; Ponder, Monica A.; Chu, Hyun Sik S.; Jin, Qing; Pilot, Guillaume; Stewart, Amanda C.

doi:10.1007/s00217-018-3171-8

Cited by 30 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…To rehydrate the dried beans, we used ultrapure water, until the moisture content reached 35%, successively beans were mixed with simulated cocoa pulp liquid medium (SCPM) as reported by [ 20 ], with modifications mainly regarding the quantity of the SCPM, in particular, we used rehydrated beans (5000 g) mixed with 1500 mL of SCPM. Successively, 10 mL of yeast suspension were inoculated singularly in 450 g of unfermented cocoa beans, placed in 1000 mL of plastic fermentation containers that were covered with lids and subjected to a controlled temperature, mimicking the conditions observed during on-farm fermentation as follows: for fermentation, the containers were incubated at 25 °C (0–12 h), 30 °C (12–24 h), 35 °C (24–36 h), 40 °C (36–48 h), 45 °C (48–72 h), and 48 °C (72–144 h) to mimic the temperature changes occurring through the cocoa fermentation as reported by [ 2 ] in a chamber under 95% humidity.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Capability of Yeasts Isolated from Colombian Fermented Cocoa Beans to Form and Degrade Biogenic Amines in a Lab-Scale Model System for Cocoa Fermentation

et al. 2020

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Yeast starters for cocoa fermentation are usually tested according to their enzymatic activities in terms of mucilage degradation and flavor improvement, disregarding their influence on the production or elimination of toxic compounds as biogenic amines (BAs), important for human health. In this work, we tested 145 strains belonging to 12 different yeast species and isolated from the Colombian fermented cocoa beans (CB) for their capability of producing BAs in vitro. Sixty-five strains were able to decarboxylate at least one of the amino acids tested. Pichia kudriavzevii ECA33 (Pk) and Saccharomyces cerevisiae 4 (Sc) were selected to evaluate their potential to modulate BAs, organic acids, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) accumulation during a simulated cocoa fermentation. The growth of Sc or Pk in the presence of CB caused a significant reduction (p < 0.05) of 2-phenylethylamine (84% and 37%) and cadaverine (58% and 51%), and a significant increase of tryptamine and putrescine with a strong influence of temperature in BA formation and degradation. In addition, our findings pointed out that Pk induced a major production of fatty acid- and amino acid-derived VOCs, while Sc induced more VOCs derived from fatty acids metabolism. Our results suggest the importance of considering BA production in the choice of yeast starters for cocoa fermentation.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Capability of Yeasts Isolated from Colombian Fermented Cocoa Beans to Form and Degrade Biogenic Amines in a Lab-Scale Model System for Cocoa Fermentation

et al. 2020

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“…The raw unfermented cocoa beans were rehydrated, fermented, and dried based on previously established pilot-scale cocoa fermentation protocols described by Racine et al [30] and Lee et al [31] with modifications. The unfermented cocoa beans (32 kg) were rehydrated in plastic fermentation boxes (polypropylene, Sterilite, Townsend, MA, USA) by submersion in distilled, deionized (DI) water (45 L) for 24 h at room temperature.…”

Section: Fermentationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flavanol Polymerization Is a Superior Predictor of α-Glucosidase Inhibitory Activity Compared to Flavanol or Total Polyphenol Concentrations in Cocoas Prepared by Variations in Controlled Fermentation and Roasting of the Same Raw Cocoa Beans

et al. 2019

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Raw cocoa beans were processed to produce cocoa powders with different combinations of fermentation (unfermented, cool, or hot) and roasting (not roasted, cool, or hot). Cocoa powder extracts were characterized and assessed for α-glucosidase inhibitory activity in vitro. Cocoa processing (fermentation/roasting) contributed to significant losses of native flavanols. All of the treatments dose-dependently inhibited α-glucosidase activity, with cool fermented/cool roasted powder exhibiting the greatest potency (IC 50 : 68.09 µg/mL), when compared to acarbose (IC 50 : 133.22 µg/mL). A strong negative correlation was observed between flavanol mDP and IC 50 , suggesting flavanol polymerization as a marker of enhanced α-glucosidase inhibition in cocoa. Our data demonstrate that cocoa powders are potent inhibitors of α-glucosidase. Significant reductions in the total polyphenol and flavanol concentrations induced by processing do not necessarily dictate a reduced capacity for α-glucosidase inhibition, but rather these steps can enhance cocoa bioactivity. Non-traditional compositional markers may be better predictors of enzyme inhibitory activity than cocoa native flavanols. oxidative stress and potentially reducing the risk of various chronic conditions, such as cardiovascular disease (CVD), type II diabetes mellitus (T2D), and different forms of cancer. Additionally, cocoa beans contain other bioactives, such as lipids, fiber, lignins, melanoidins (after roasting), methylxanthines, and other complex compounds that have not been extensively characterized. Beans contain approximately 55% fat, 16% fiber, 10% protein, and 3% ash, depending on variety. The health benefits associated with dietary cocoa are likely due to multiple bioactive compounds and their interactions, rather than one compound or class of compounds, because of the complex composition of cocoa and the reactions that occur during cocoa processing [6].After harvesting, cocoa beans undergo a series of processing steps, including fermentation, drying, roasting, winnowing, and various other processes that may include pressing or alkalization, to produce a final product, such as cocoa powder or chocolate. These processes strongly influence the chemical composition of the product, with fermentation resulting in approximately 0-70% loss of total polyphenols and roasting costing an additional 15-40% loss [7][8][9]. Additionally, non-enzymatic browning reactions occur between native cocoa polyphenols and mono-or polysaccharides, proteins, and amino acids to produce Maillard reaction products, most notably melanoidins [10]. The widely-accepted paradigm is that preservation of native flavanols is critical for retaining bioactivity [7,9,11]. However, it is possible that reactions occurring throughout processing may generate processing-derived compounds with novel activities, such as lignin-like complexes and melanoidins, potentially preserving or even enhancing certain bioactivities as compared to the raw cocoa bean [7,[12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19]. The levels and a...

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“…In a controlled setting, factors such as temperature, bulk density, relative humidity, oxygenation, microbial inoculation and other influences can be regulated and manipulated, furthering scientific understanding of the complex interactions occurring during cocoa fermentation. Additionally, previously published fermentation-like model systems range in capacity from 25 beans to 1.2 kg rehydrated bean weight [19,22,57]. With the capacity of our model to ferment approximately 30 kg of rehydrated cocoa beans simultaneously, this novel pilot-scale model can produce relatively large quantities of fermented beans in a controlled setting.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Raw unfermented Criollo cocoa beans (18 kg) (Natural Zing LLC, Mount Airy, MD, USA), sourced from Ecuador, were rehydrated in 66.4 × 44.3 × 34.3 cm plastic fermentation boxes (Polypropylene, Sterilite, Townsend, MA, USA) by submersion in approximately 20 L of distilled, deionized (DI) water for 24 h. The final moisture content of the beans after rehydration was 39.7% (IR-120 Moisture Analyzer, Denver Instrument, Bohemia, NY, USA), close to the lower end of the typical moisture range (40–60%) for fresh beans [32,33]. Rehydrated beans were then drained and 15 kg were mixed with 16 L of simulated pulp media, prepared as described by Lee et al [22] with minor modifications. Simulated pulp media were obtained by mixing 3 separate solutions (solutions A, B and C).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These model fermentations generally use pulp and beans from freshly harvested pods—which is not practical for frequent large-scale use in cocoa fermentation research conducted in non-tropical regions—and use inoculated and ambient pulp mediums [6,17,18,19,20,21]. Our group recently developed a large laboratory bench-scale fermentation using simulated pulp media and dried unfermented cocoa beans as starting material [22]. To our knowledge, ours was the first model of this scale.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Development and Characterization of a Pilot-Scale Model Cocoa Fermentation System Suitable for Studying the Impact of Fermentation on Putative Bioactive Compounds and Bioactivity of Cocoa

Racine

Lee

Wiersema

et al. 2019

Foods

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Cocoa is a concentrated source of dietary flavanols—putative bioactive compounds associated with health benefits. It is known that fermentation and roasting reduce levels of native flavonoids in cocoa, and it is generally thought that this loss translates to reduced bioactivity. However, the mechanisms of these losses are poorly understood, and little data exist to support this paradigm that flavonoid loss results in reduced health benefits. To further facilitate large-scale studies of the impact of fermentation on cocoa flavanols, a controlled laboratory fermentation model system was increased in scale to a large (pilot) scale system. Raw cocoa beans (15 kg) were fermented in 16 L of a simulated pulp media in duplicate for 168 h. The temperature of the fermentation was increased from 25–55 °C at a rate of 5 °C/24 h. As expected, total polyphenols and flavanol levels decreased as fermentation progressed (a loss of 18.3% total polyphenols and 14.4% loss of total flavanols during fermentation) but some increases were observed in the final timepoints (120–168 h). Fermentation substrates, metabolites and putative cocoa bioactive compounds were monitored and found to follow typical trends for on-farm cocoa heap fermentations. For example, sucrose levels in pulp declined from >40 mg/mL to undetectable at 96 h. This model system provides a controlled environment for further investigation into the potential for optimizing fermentation parameters to enhance the flavanol composition and the potential health benefits of the resultant cocoa beans.

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A laboratory-scale model cocoa fermentation using dried, unfermented beans and artificial pulp can simulate the microbial and chemical changes of on-farm cocoa fermentation

Cited by 30 publications

References 33 publications

Exploring the Capability of Yeasts Isolated from Colombian Fermented Cocoa Beans to Form and Degrade Biogenic Amines in a Lab-Scale Model System for Cocoa Fermentation

Exploring the Capability of Yeasts Isolated from Colombian Fermented Cocoa Beans to Form and Degrade Biogenic Amines in a Lab-Scale Model System for Cocoa Fermentation

Flavanol Polymerization Is a Superior Predictor of α-Glucosidase Inhibitory Activity Compared to Flavanol or Total Polyphenol Concentrations in Cocoas Prepared by Variations in Controlled Fermentation and Roasting of the Same Raw Cocoa Beans

Development and Characterization of a Pilot-Scale Model Cocoa Fermentation System Suitable for Studying the Impact of Fermentation on Putative Bioactive Compounds and Bioactivity of Cocoa

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