Sharma Anamika, Thakur Avinash, Nanda Vikas
Department of Food Engineering and Technology, Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering and Technology, Longowal, India.
Department of Chemical Engineering, Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering and Technology, Longowal, India.
J Food Sci. 2024 Dec;89(12):8431-8453. doi: 10.1111/1750-3841.17472. Epub 2024 Nov 4.
Bee pollen is a nutrient-rich super food, but its rigid dual-layered structure limits nutrient release and absorption. The outer exine, composed of stress-resistant sporopollenin, and the inner intine, consisting of cellulose and pectin, form a barrier to digestive breakdown. This study investigates the potential of green techniques, specifically supercritical fluid extraction and ultrasonication, to disaggregate pollen cell walls, enhancing its bioavailability and maximizing nutrient utilization. Ultrasonication treated pollen (USTP) and supercritical fluid extraction-treated pollen (STP) demonstrated disruption, as evidenced by scanning electron microscopy imaging. In relation to scanning electron microscopy, techno-functional, antioxidant, and compositional analysis displayed a positive outcome, with crude lipid, protein, antioxidant activity (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl activity and 2,2'-azino-bis-3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonic acid assay) and total phenolic content increased by 34.80%, 32.58%, 10.80%, 11.37%, and 83.94%, respectively. Based on the above properties, USTP for 4 h and STP at 400 bar for 40 min were identified as the optimal conditions for disintegration. Furthermore, optimized samples analyzed for amino acid and mineral release revealed a notable increase in composition of essential amino acid and minerals (Ca, Cu, Fe, etc.) by ∼1.5 and 1.2 times, respectively. Along with significant changes in composition, fractured pollen exhibited 1.4 folds increase in protein digestibility with minor differences in thermal stability, and crystallinity as established by differential scanning calorimetry, and X-ray diffraction analysis. The study confirms that nutrient release and absorption remain restricted without pre-treatment, highlighting the necessity of specific treatment to disintegrate bee pollen before its use as a functional food ingredient. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Bee pollen is a rich source of all the essential nutrients required by the humans and recognised as a complete food. However, its tough cellular structure restricts its utilisation in numerous food applications. Therefore, to disintegrate bee pollen and release its nutrients, ultrasonication and super critical fluid extraction processes were employed to improve its utilization for human purposes. Both the treatment techniques, enhanced bee pollen's bioavailability and functional properties, making it more suitable for use in nutraceuticals and functional foods.These treatments proved to increase the antioxidant capacity, digestibility, and create high-value ingredient for supplements, beverages, and fortified foods.
蜂花粉是一种营养丰富的超级食物，但其坚硬的双层结构限制了营养物质的释放和吸收。外层的花粉外壁由抗逆性的孢粉素组成，内层的花粉内壁由纤维素和果胶构成，形成了一道阻碍消化分解的屏障。本研究探讨了绿色技术，特别是超临界流体萃取和超声处理，用于分解花粉细胞壁、提高其生物利用度并最大化营养物质利用率的潜力。超声处理的花粉（USTP）和超临界流体萃取处理的花粉（STP）显示出了细胞壁的破坏，扫描电子显微镜成像证明了这一点。关于扫描电子显微镜、技术功能、抗氧化和成分分析均显示出了积极的结果，粗脂肪、蛋白质、抗氧化活性（2,2-二苯基-1-苦基肼自由基活性和2,2'-偶氮双-3-乙基苯并噻唑啉-6-磺酸测定法）以及总酚含量分别增加了34.80%、32.58%、10.80%、11.37%和83.94%。基于上述特性，确定4小时的超声处理和400巴下40分钟的超临界流体萃取为最佳分解条件。此外，对优化后的样品进行氨基酸和矿物质释放分析发现，必需氨基酸和矿物质（钙、铜、铁等）的组成分别显著增加了约1.5倍和1.2倍。除了成分上的显著变化外，破碎的花粉蛋白质消化率提高了1.4倍，差示扫描量热法和X射线衍射分析表明其热稳定性和结晶度仅有微小差异。该研究证实，未经预处理时营养物质的释放和吸收仍然受限，突出了在将蜂花粉用作功能性食品成分之前进行特定处理以分解蜂花粉的必要性。实际应用：蜂花粉是人类所需的所有必需营养素的丰富来源，被认为是一种完整的食物。然而，其坚韧的细胞结构限制了它在众多食品应用中的利用。因此，为了分解蜂花粉并释放其营养成分，采用了超声处理和超临界流体萃取工艺来提高其对人类的利用价值。这两种处理技术都提高了蜂花粉的生物利用度和功能特性，使其更适合用于营养保健品和功能性食品。这些处理被证明可以提高抗氧化能力、消化率，并为补充剂、饮料和强化食品创造高价值成分。
