Comparative Analysis of the Chemical Composition and Physicochemical Properties of the Mucilage Extracted from Fresh and Dehydrated Opuntia ficus indica Cladodes

Abstract

The development of sustainable extraction methods to obtain natural products constitutes a challenge for the food industry. The aim of this work was to compare yield, separation efficiency, chemical composition, and physicochemical properties of the mucilage extracted from fresh cladodes (FNM) and mucilage extracted from dehydrated cladodes (DNM) of O. ficus indica. Suspensions of fresh and dehydrated cladodes (4% w/w) were prepared for mucilage extraction by using a mechanical separation process. Subsequently, the separated mucilage was precipitated with ethyl alcohol (1:2 v/v) then, yield and separation efficiency were determined. The mucilage was characterized by measuring Z potential, viscosity, color, and texture attributes. Additionally, chemical proximate analysis, scanning electron microscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were conducted. No significant differences (p < 0.05) were detected in the yield and separation efficiencies between samples. Nevertheless, the dehydration process of cladodes prior to mucilage extraction increased protein, ashes, nitrogen free extract, and calcium content. The viscosity was higher in DNM than in FNM. The TGA revealed a different thermal behavior between samples. In addition, the DNM showed lower L (darkness/lightness), cohesiveness, adhesiveness, and springiness values than those of FNM. These results support that differences found between the chemical and physicochemical properties of DNM and those of FNM will determine the applications of the mucilage obtained from the O. ficus indica cladodes in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries.

Influence of power density and geometry of young cactus cladodes (Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill.) on intermittent microwave drying kinetics

“…In all treatments, white granules were observed that are probably oxalate crystals. These crystals have already been reported in microwavedried nopal cladodes (Cruz-de la Cruz et al, 2020) and hot air (Quintero-García et al, 2021). The presence of these small crystals on the surface can be caused by the transport of mucilage, which occurs from the inside to the outside, during the drying process.…”

“…On average the moisture of fresh cladode was 14.3 ± 0.39 g H2O g −1 db (93.85±0.43 %). The moisture content for nopal has been reported within this range (Cruz-de la Cruz, Espinosa-Solares, Aguilar-Méndez, Guerra-Ramírez, & Hernández-Eugenio, 2020; Dey et al, 2019;Quintero-García et al, 2021). Table 2 shows the apical, basal, and average thickness of the cladodes before being subjected to the drying process.…”

Effects of flaxseed mucilage and water to cement ratio on mechanical and hydration characteristics of an OPC mortar

“…Conversely, FM contains a high xylose and arabinose content. The protein content of the OFI extract is lower than that of FM but the higher ash content and especially calcium [47,48] could generate a pozzolanic reaction helping the microstructure.…”

Phosphorus recovery from agricultural waste via cactus pear biomass

“…The FT-IR spectral analysis ( Fig. 2 ) reveals various absorption peaks, each corresponding to specific molecular vibrations [ 14 , [19] , [20] , [21] ]. Within the range of 3700–2500 cm −1 , a broad absorption band is observed, indicating the intramolecular vibrational stretching of the –OH groups, which are extensively engaged in hydrogen bonding.…”