EFFECT OF COLD PLASMA TREATMENT ON THE FUNCTIONAL PROPERTIES OF FRESH-CUT APPLES

The atmospheric double barrier discharge (DBD) plasma technology is a promising tool in food industry as an alternative to traditional food preservation methods. However, the effect of the reactive chemical species generated during the treatment on the qualitative and quantitative content of bioactive compounds in food is still little studied, as well as there are no data concerning potential deleterious effects of DBD treated foods on human cells. We measured antioxidants content and antioxidant capacity of DBD-treated minimally processed Pink Lady® apples in comparison with untreated matched samples. Moreover, we compared the effects of polyphenols extracts obtained from DBD-treated apples on cell viability, reactive oxygen species production and phase II enzyme activation. The results show that the plasma treatment causes a slight reduction of antioxidant content and antioxidant capacity. Noteworthy, apple treated polyphenols extracts do not reduce cell viability and do not suppress the beneficial physiological cell response to oxidative stress.