%0 Journal Article
%T Production of prebiotic enriched maple syrup through enzymatic conversion of sucrose into fructo-oligosaccharides.
%A Veljković M
%A Banjanac K
%A Milivojević A
%A Ćorović M
%A Simović M
%A Bezbradica D
%J Food Chem
%V 449
%N 0
%D 2024 Aug 15
%M 38579650
%F 9.231
%R 10.1016/j.foodchem.2024.139180
%X Maple syrup, a popular natural sweetener has a high content of sucrose, whose consumption is linked to different health issues such as obesity and diabetes. Hence, within this paper, the conversion of sucrose to prebiotics (fructo-oligosaccharides, FOS) was proposed as a promising approach to obtaining a healthier, value-added product. Enzymatic conversion was optimized with respect to key experimental factors, and thereafter derived immobilized preparation of fructosyltransferase (FTase) from Pectinex® Ultra SP-L (FTase-epoxy Purolite, 255 IU/g support) was successfully utilized to produce novel functional product in ten consecutive reaction cycles. The product, obtained under optimal conditions (60 °C, 7.65 IU/mL, 12 h), resulted in 56.0% FOS, 16.7% sucrose, and 27.3% monosaccharides of total carbohydrates, leading to a 1.6-fold reduction in caloric content. The obtained products` prebiotic potential toward the probiotic strain Lactobacillus plantarum 299v was demonstrated. The changes in physico-chemical and sensorial characteristics were esteemed as negligible.