Phytochemical Constituents of Flour and Composite Bread from African Palmyra (Borassus aethiopum) Fruit from Ghana

Aims: To explore the use of Borassus aethiopum fruit as composite flour and bread and determine the phytochemical composition in each product. Place and Duration: Department of Biochemistry, and Department of Food science food and sensory evaluation laboratory, between September, 2016 and April, 2017. Study Design: An experimental study. Methods: The African palmyra fruits were obtained from Sekyere Odumase and processed into Borassus flour and composite bread. Phytochemicals constituents were determined in both products using aqueous and methanol extracts. Results: The results of both aqueous and methanol extraction for the phytochemical testing indicated that the raw B. aethiopum powder (RBAP) contained flavonoids, saponins, phenols, cardiac glycosides, alkaloids, triterpenes, steroids and sterols. Borassus bread contained flavonoids, alkaloid, triterpenes, steroids and sterols in both extracts, whilst cardiac glycosides, saponins and phenols maintained their strong presence in both extracts of composite Borassus bread. Tannins were absent in both extracts of B. aethiopum powder and bread composite. Also, the total phenol content in the composite bread was lower compared with the Borassus flour (P=0.000). The total antioxidant capacity in the Borassus flour (EC50= 2.1±0.24 mg/mL) was significantly higher than the composite bread (EC50=2.24±0.4 mg/mL) (P= 0.000). However, both products had less antioxidants than standard ascorbic acid (EC50=0.12±0.2 mg/mL). Conclusion: Both Borassus flour and composite bread had appreciable phytochemicals present, with some antioxidant capacity which could beneficially help in the management of people with chronic diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

Physicochemical Properties of Starch from Young Growths of Borassus Aethiopum.

The characterization of Borassus aethiopum starch showed that the crude protein (0.18 %), total lipid (0.21 %), ash (0.09 %) and the moisture (1 %) were typical of most starches The amylose content (26.31 %) falls within the apparent amylose range 17-30 %). The granular structure of Borassus aethiopum young growths starch showed significant variations in size and shape. Most of the granules are oval, although spherical, round, elliptical. The starch exhibited swelling power and solubility behaviors which were dependent on temperature. The maximum solubility and swelling power were obtained at highest temperature of 95 °C. The syneresis of starch paste was 78.58 % the first day and increased to 83.14 % at the 28 th day while the clarity decreased from 56.53 to 25.07 % during the same period. The optimum pH of enzymatic hydrolysis of Borassus aethiopum starch by the digestive juice of snail Archachatina ventricosa was pH 5 while the optimum temperature was 45 °C. The influence of gelatinization time on the enzymatic hydrolysis of gelatinized starch showed that the hydrolysis extent increases with the time of gelatinization up to 4 minutes then it does not vary enough whereas the duration of gelatinization is prolonged. The hydrolysis extent of gelatinized starch by the digestive juice of snail Archachatina ventricosa was 70.6 % after 2 hours of incubation.