Uncover the Mystery of Pectinase

The appearance of pectinase is light yellow powder, and it is called one of the four major enzyme preparations. In fact, pectinase does not specifically refer to a certain enzyme, but a general term for a class of enzymes that decompose pectin, including galacturonidase, pectin-decomposing enzyme and pectin lipase.

Pectinase can decompose pectin, disintegrate plant cell walls and intercellular layers, making it easier to squeeze juice, and decompose pectin into soluble galacturonic acid, which will also make cloudy juice become clear. Pectinase is mainly found in higher plants and microorganisms, and it is also found in some protozoa and insects. At present, the main source of commercially available food-grade pectinase is the metabolites of Aspergillus niger.

Pectinase plays a very important role in juice production. In general, the fruit juice after crushing contains solids such as pectin and cellulose. According to the molecular size, pectin acts as a plant fiber, it will prevent or even stop the flow of the liquid, so that the solid particles remain suspended and the juice is in a uniform turbid state. Therefore, the pectin must be decomposed to make the juice inactive to make the juice clarify, and pectinase can play this role.

Pectinase acts on the glycosidic bond between D-galacturonic acid residues in pectin, which can break the pectin molecule and soften the pectin gum in the pulp tissue. The high-molecular galacturonic acid degrades the small molecules of galacturonic acid and pectic acid.

In addition, the polysaccharide chains of pectin will also be degraded, and this continuous degradation of pectin molecules will cause the solids in the juice to lose support and settle. Thereby, the clarification effect of the juice is enhanced, the filterability and filtering speed of the juice are improved and accelerated, and the juice yield is increased.

In addition to the production of fruit and vegetable juice and the clarification of fruit wine, pectinase can also be used to extract natural products. The extracts produced by pectinase include ginkgo biloba extract, garlic oil concentrate, and ginseng pulp.

In addition, pectinase also plays a very important role in the paper industry. In the paper industry, people use pectinase and other enzymes to process and degrade pectin, hemicellulose and lignin in plant fiber raw materials. Disperse it into bundle fibers or single fibers that meet the different requirements of the paper industry to produce soft, uniform, and elastic high-quality materials.

The use of pectinase in the wine industry can increase the extraction of natural pigments, improve the color and flavor of the wine, increase the aroma, and produce sparkling wine, which plays an important role in improving the quality of the wine.

Researchers studied the effect of pectinase on the main components of red wine. The results showed that the addition of pectinase has almost no effect on the sugar and acid content of grape juice, but it can reduce the viscosity of the juice and facilitate the dissolution of pigments. The samples with pectinase fermented more vigorously and faster than those without pectinase, which can reduce the amount of volatile acid produced, increase the content of dry extracts and total phenols of the original wine, and improve the quality of wine.

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