Effect of pectinase addition in juice processing on the structural characteristics, immunological activity and in vitro and in vivo prebiotic properties of apple pomace pectic polysaccharides
Yue F. Jiang M. Xu J. Ma J. Sun X. Huang J. Muratkhan M. Wang X. Lü X.
7 April 2025Royal Society of Chemistry
Food and Function
2025#16Issue 93721 - 3735 pp.
Apple pomace is a waste in fruit juice processing and is an important raw material for pectin extraction. The addition of pectinase will not only change the juice characteristics but also affect the apple pomace. However, the differences in the structure and function of pectin obtained from the pectinase-treated (TAPP) and untreated apple pomace (NTAPP) are unclear. In this paper, TAPP and NTAPP (APPs) were prepared using the subcritical-water method. Structural analysis showed that the APPs were acidic-pectin polysaccharides with low molecular weight (Mw) and a high esterification degree (DE), but TAPP had a lower Mw, DE, and galacturonic acid content and smoother surface. Immune activity detection demonstrated that NTAPP can stimulate macrophage proliferation, phagocytosis, and cytokine release by activating the TLR4/p-ERK/p-NFκB pathway, while TAPP activates the TLR4/p-NFκB to stimulate macrophage phagocytosis and the cytokine release. In vitro fermentation characteristics indicate that anaerobic fermentation using APPs as the sole carbon source can significantly promote the production of lactic acid and the short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). Microbial diversity analysis revealed that the APPs exhibit prebiotic properties, but their effects on the gut microbiota composition differ: TAPP mainly promotes the enrichment of Akkermansia, while NTAPP primarily enhances the abundance of Faecalibaculum and Dubosiella. Finally, structure-function correlation analysis suggests that monosaccharide composition (particularly mannose) and molecular weight (Mw) are key factors influencing the gut microbiota composition, providing a research direction for future studies on their structure-activity relationships.
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College of Food Science and Engineering, Northwest A&F University, Shaanxi, Yangling, 712100, China
Xijing Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, No. 127, Changle West Road, Shaanxi, Xian, 710032, China
State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Adaptation and Improvement, College of Agriculture, Henan University, Kaifeng, 475004, China
Department of Food Technology and Processing Products, Technical Faculty, Saken Seifullin Kazakh Agrotechnical University, Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan
College of Food Science and Engineering
Xijing Hospital
State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Adaptation and Improvement
Department of Food Technology and Processing Products
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