Detalhes do Documento

Anthocyanins are a group of natural pigments presenting a range of colours between red, blue, and violet that are characteristic of various fruits and vegetables. A complex profile of anthocyanins, predominantly cyanidin 3-rutinoside and peonidin 3-rutinoside, was previously identified in Prunus spinosa L. fruit, a bitter and astringent fruit from a wild shrub that is poorly commercially exploited [1]. In this sense, the objective of this work was to develop a natural food colourant based on anthocyanins extracted from the epicarp of P. spinosa fruits. For that purpose, a conventional extraction method, maceration, and a rapid and low-cost ultrasound procedure were applied for the extraction of anthocyanins from this matrix. To achieve the conditions that maximize anthocyanins’ extraction, a response surface methodology was applied using a circumscribed central composite design with three variables and five levels, being the variables time, temperature, and ethanol content, in the case of maceration extraction, whereas for ultrasound assisted extraction, temperature was replaced by ultrasound power. The anthocyanins were identified and quantified by HPLC-DAD-ESI/MS. The optimized extract was assessed in terms of antioxidant and antimicrobial capacity, and hepatotoxicity. Ultrasound assisted extraction was the most efficient method, under optimum conditions of 5.00±0.15 min, 400.00±32.00 W and 47.98±2.88% ethanol, where the extraction yield was 68.60±2.06% (v/v), with a total anthocyanin content of 18.17±1.82 mg/g of dry extract and 11.76±0.82 mg/g of dry epicarp. Regarding bioactivity, the optimized extract showed antioxidant and antimicrobial activity and it did not show hepatotoxic effects in a primary culture of porcine liver cells. To validate its coloring properties, the anthocyanin-rich extract was incorporated into a typical Brazilian confectionery product "beijinho", proving its applicability as food colorant.