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The effect of carboxymethyl cellulose and β-cyclodextrin as debittering agents on bitterness and physicochemical properties of bitter gourd extract

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Abstract

Bitter gourd extract (BGE) is rich in antioxidants and anti-diabetic components that promote good human health; however, its bitter taste makes it challenging to use in food. In this study, the effect of carboxymethyl cellulose and β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) on the bitterness and properties of BGE were investigated. The bitterness intensity was evaluated by the trained sensory panel, and the physicochemical properties were also determined, including viscosity, total saponin, polyphenol content, antioxidant capacity, and α-amylase inhibition activity. It was found that the bitterness of BGE with 0.75%, w/v β-cyclodextrin decreased significantly by more than 90%. Additionally, FTIR, 1 H-NMR, and thermogravimetric analysis of BGE supplemented with β-CD confirmed the formation of a complex between β-CD and components of BGE. The findings of the current study also reveal that debittering agents did not inhibit the bioactivities of BGE.

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Data Availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge Ministry of Education (Taiwan) provided Taiwan Elite Scholarship, Van Thi Dung, Tran Nguyen Bao Chau, Do Thi Kim Anh, Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Ho Chi Minh City University of Food Industry (HUFI) for assistance in collecting sensory data in this study, Miss Ting-Yin Cheng at Instrumentation Centre of National Tsing Hua University for the Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and Miss Bi-Yin Lin at National Cheng Kung University for the NMR experiments.

Funding

This work was supported by research funding grants provided by the National Science and Technology Council of Taiwan (NSTC 111-2221-E-992-005-MY3).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Seafood Science, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung, 811, Taiwan

    Cam Thi Hong Tran, Parushi Nargotra & Chia-Hung Kuo

  2. Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung, 811, Taiwan

    Cam Thi Hong Tran, Cheng-Di Dong & Chia-Hung Kuo

  3. Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Ho Chi Minh City University of Food Industry, 140 Le TrongTan Street, Ho Chi Minh, Tay Thanh Ward, Vietnam

    Cam Thi Hong Tran, Hoa Thi Cam Pham & Dong My Lieu

  4. Hutech Institute of Applied Sciences, HUTECH University, Dien Bien Phu Street, Ward 25, Ho Chi Minh, Binh Thanh, Vietnam

    Phung Kim Huynh

  5. Graduate Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung, 402, Taiwan

    Hui-Min David Wang

  6. Department of Marine Environmental Engineering, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung, 811, Taiwan

    Cheng-Di Dong

  7. Center for Aquatic Products Inspection Service, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung, 811, Taiwan

    Chia-Hung Kuo

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  1. Cam Thi Hong Tran
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  2. Parushi Nargotra
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Contributions

CTHT: Investigation, Methodology, Formal analysis, Conceptualization, Writing-Original Draft. HTCP: Methodology. DML: Resources. PKH: Resources. PN: Validation, Revision. HMDW: Resources. CDD: Resources, Supervision. CHK: Resources, Supervision, Revision, Writing-Review & Editing.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Chia-Hung Kuo.

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Tran, C.T.H., Nargotra, P., Pham, H.T.C. et al. The effect of carboxymethyl cellulose and β-cyclodextrin as debittering agents on bitterness and physicochemical properties of bitter gourd extract. J Food Sci Technol 60, 1521–1529 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-023-05693-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-023-05693-4

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