Brazil has been conquering tropical fruit juice international market , especially with açaí (native fruit with the highest penetration in the international), considered a functional food for its anthocyanin, dietetic fibe, and monounsaturated fat content. However, açaí is very perishable, so the use of technology is needed in order to ensure long shelf life. In this case, High Hydrostatic Pressure (HHP) use can be an alternative to traditional processing techniques for enzyme activation or inactivation. Peroxidases (POD) and Polyphenoloxidases (PPO) are the main enzymes responsible for undesirable changes in the original characteristics of vegetable products, but using HHP to inactivate them, it is possible to avoid enzymatic browning maintaining sensorial properties. Aiming to evaluate HHP effect on POD and PPO, present in the açaí pulp, the variables pressure, temperature, and time were adopted. Enzyme activities, expressed in percentages, indicate a more stable POD, achieving percentages close to 100% (control). The lowest activities were at 90.74%, and when applied 300 and 500 MPa, 25 °C for 5 minutes treatments, the activities increased (112.34 and 132.98%, respectively). PPO activity rose up to 83.03% in relation to the to control even though inactivation was present in most of the processes (35 °C/5 minutes at 300 and 500 MPa, 53.25, and 53.75%, respectively). Under the experimental conditions, HHP proved effective for the partial inactivation of açaí pulp oxidases.
açaí; high hydrostatic pressure; peroxidase; polyphenoloxidase
