Recent developments in cold plasma‐based enzyme activity (browning, cell wall degradation, and antioxidant) in fruits and vegetables

Abstract

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of United Nations reports, approximately half of the total harvested fruits and vegetables vanish before they reach the end consumer due to their perishable nature. Enzymatic browning is one of the most common problems faced by fruit and vegetable processing. The perishability of fruits and vegetables is contributed by the various browning enzymes (polyphenol oxidase, peroxidase, and phenylalanine ammonia‐lyase) and ripening or cell wall degrading enzyme (pectin methyl‐esterase). In contrast, antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase and catalase) assist in reversing the damage caused by reactive oxygen species or free radicals. The cold plasma technique has emerged as a novel, economic, and environmentally friendly approach that reduces the expression of ripening and browning enzymes while increasing the activity of antioxidant enzymes; microorganisms are significantly inhibited, therefore improving the shelf life of fruits and vegetables. This review narrates the mechanism and principle involved in the use of cold plasma technique as a nonthermal agent and its application in impeding the activity of browning and ripening enzymes and increasing the expression of antioxidant enzymes for improving the shelf life and quality of fresh fruits and vegetables and preventing spoilage and pathogenic germs from growing. An overview of hurdles and sustainability advantages of cold plasma technology is presented.

Evaluating the Effects of Wheat Cultivar and Extrusion Processing on Nutritional, Health-Promoting, and Antioxidant Properties of Flour

“…WH-1080, respectively. Rufian-Henares and Delgado-Andrade ( 24 ) and Punia Bangar et al ( 7 ) reported an increase in the antioxidant activity of rye and barley, which could be related to the development of Maillard browning pigments, which boosted the antioxidant activity of extrudates ( 25 , 26 ).…”

Improving food drying performance by cold plasma pretreatment: A systematic review

“…In addition, peptide bonds in the primary structure of the enzyme are broken, and disulfide bonds are formed or broken. The chemical bonds that maintain the α helix and β fold of the secondary machinery also change the steric folding state of the enzyme due to disruption (Punia Bangar et al., 2022). For some enzymes in which metal ions play a catalytic role in the active center, such as PPO enzymes, the oxidation of metal ions will also inactivate the enzyme (Punia Bangar et al., 2022).…”

“…The chemical bonds that maintain the α helix and β fold of the secondary machinery also change the steric folding state of the enzyme due to disruption (Punia Bangar et al., 2022). For some enzymes in which metal ions play a catalytic role in the active center, such as PPO enzymes, the oxidation of metal ions will also inactivate the enzyme (Punia Bangar et al., 2022). The disruption of all these chemical bonds results in folding and conformational changes, resulting in loss of enzymatic activity.…”

Cold plasma for microbial safety: Principle, mechanism, and factors responsible

“…This approach is mainly employed for microbial decontamination, sterilization of food surfaces, degradation of pesticides, toxins, etc. (Punia Bangar et al, 2022), as presented in Figure 1. CP is “cold,” which means it operates at room temperature and maybe generated at atmospheric pressure on earth.…”