Effects of high pressure homogenization on pectin structural characteristics and carotenoid bioaccessibility of carrot juice

Effects of high pressure homogenization (HPH) on stability, water-soluble pectin (WSP) and total carotenoid bioaccessiblity (TCB) of carrot juice were investigated to reveal the feasibility of applying HPH for improving TCB and the relationships between WSP and TCB induced by HPH. Results illustrated that HPH improved the juice stability and TCB. HPH increased the uronic acid content (UAC), and decreased the degree of methoxylation (DM) and acetylation (DAc) of WSP compared to non-homogenization. However, pressure and pass showed no significant effect on UAC, DM and DAc. HPH decreased the weight-average molar mass of WSP, signifying the degradation, which was enhanced by the increasing pressure. Emulsifying activity (EA) decreased with the increasing pass and inlet temperature. Functional relationships were found between TCB and WSP characteristics (DM and EA). Lower DM and EA contributed to higher TCB. Moreover, statistical correlations were found between TCB and indicators of WSP (UAC and DAc).