Abstract
This research aimed to study the effect of pulsed electric field (PEF) processing on the bioprotective capacity of carrot puree for White Belgian, Yellow Solar, Nantes, Nutri Red and Purple Haze cultivars against H2O2-induced oxidative damage. The bioprotective capacity was determined using cell viability, membrane integrity and nitric oxide (NO) production in a human Caco-2 cell culture assay. Total carotenoids, total anthocyanins, total vitamin C and total phenolics were also evaluated. Compared to the untreated puree, Purple Haze and Nutri Red processed at 303 kJ/kg completely increased Caco-2 cells resistance towards oxidative damage by recovering the cell viability and inhibiting NO production. For cultivar with low carotenoid levels, i.e. Yellow Solar, the application of 0.8 kV/cm resulted in a higher total carotenoid content in the puree than its untreated counterpart, leading to an improved bioprotective effect. This study clearly shows that PEF could add value to carrots by maximising bioprotective effects. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.