Valorization of guava (Psidium guajava) seeds through intensifying technologies of germination

• Grant number: 24/07929-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: September 01, 2024
• End date: August 31, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology - Food Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Tiago Carregari Polachini
• Grantee: Vitor Augusto Lopes Stochi
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências, Letras e Ciências Exatas (IBILCE). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de São José do Rio Preto. São José do Rio Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The growing interest in adopting healthier and more sustainable lifestyles has stimulated studies to enhance food products and processes. Due to the high consumption of fruit worldwide, the use and valorization of the byproducts generated will be the main focus of this proposal. In this sense, ultrasound (US) will be used as a non-conventional technology to intensify the germination of guava seeds (Psidium guajava), in order to produce new food products with health-promoting properties. The mechanisms of water absorption by seeds during dormancy breakdown will be studied, with and without the assistance of ultrasound. The hydration kinetics will be studied by fitting the Weibull and Peleg models to the experimental data. The hydrated seeds will be subject to germination under different controlled temperatures. Germination power and radicle growth development will be monitored during pre-defined periods. After germination, the sprouts will be evaluated according to their chemical composition, antioxidant properties and bioactive compounds. With these data, the intensified production of the sprouts obtained could be aimed for direct consumption or even for application as clean label ingredients in new food products. Furthermore, improving the conventional process can contribute to the development of more efficient processes - providing a new destination for underused raw materials and, at the same time, strengthening the circular economy.