Microencapsulation of Oenocarpus distichus pulp with different proteins by freeze-dried: functional properties and microscopy.

Fruit is an essential component of a healthy diet, contributing to the prevention of several diseases. However, their consumption is limited by the population for reasons of convenience, among others. High-quality food products are obtained by freeze-drying. However, the chemical composition and physical properties of the biopolymers used can affect the quality of the dehydrated product, which can compromise its use and application. The aim of this study was the production of microparticles by freeze-drying technique containing Oenocarpus distichus pulp and different proportions of maltodextrin, gum arabic, and vegetable proteins rice protein and pea protein with the addition of bacaba pulp. The following emulsions were produced: BGA (bacaba + gum arabic), BMD (bacaba + maltodextrin), BPA (bacaba + rice protein) and BPE (bacaba + pea protein) which were freeze-dried. The powders obtained by the freeze-drying process showed lamellar morphology with surface irregularities as kneading / concavities typical of this drying process. However the BGA sample showed the best citric acid and ascorbic acid values. In relation to the fatty acids, the sample BPA sample showed thebetter stability for palmitic acid;, in relation to the oleic acid, the sample BMD showed better results. The detailed results propose that using the freeze-drying dehydration methodology of bacaba-de fan emulsions allows the preservation of bioactive compounds, besides antioxidant properties and ascorbic acid retention. Gum arabic proved to be the most suitable biopolymer, as its addition improves the functional properties of the freeze-dried fruit powder. The results indicate that it is possible to produce powders from the fan bacaba with high retention of functional compounds and that the microencapsulation, was able to retain a significant percentage of organic acids. Therefore, the product may be promising for application in the food industry as a functional food.