Water-soluble yellow mustard mucilage: A novel ingredient with potent antioxidant properties

• It is the first time that antioxidant property of water-soluble yellow mucilage (WSM) was evaluated.
• WSM demonstrated the strongest antioxidant activity compared to the other two commercial polysaccharides, xanthan gum and citrus pectin.
• No relationship was found between antioxidant property and uronic acid content, molecular weight, and apparent viscosity of polysaccharides.
• WSM could be a novel ingredient in food industries due to its superior antioxidant activities compared to citrus pectin and xanthan gum.

The antioxidant properties of the water-soluble yellow mustard (Sinapis alba L.) mucilage (WSM) were compared with citrus pectin and xanthan gum using in vitro methods. The antioxidants ascorbic acid and butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) were used as controls. The antioxidant activity, DPPH free radical scavenging ability, and reducing power on Fe were measured. Molecular weight (MW), uronic acid content, and viscosity for the three polysaccharides were obtained to investigate the relationships between the physicochemical properties and antioxidant activities of the three different polysaccharides. The results showed that the overall antioxidant activity of polysaccharides was lower than that for ascorbic acid and BHA. Of the three polysaccharides, WSM exhibited the strongest antioxidant properties, followed by citrus pectin and xanthan gum. Statistical analysis showed that the MW and uronic acid content had significant effects on antioxidant activity (P < 0.05). MW, uronic acid and apparent viscosity had significant effects on reducing power on Fe (P < 0.05). Concentration also significantly affected DPPH free radical scavenging effect and reducing power on Fe (P < 0.05). The study indicated a great potential of using WSM as a novel ingredient in food industries due to its superior antioxidant activities compared to citrus pectin and xanthan gum.