The effects of Celluclast 1.5L concentration on the physicochemical characterization of gold kiwifruit pectin was evaluated. Varying the enzyme concentration affected the pectin yield and pectin physicochemical properties. The viscosity of extracted pectin was largely dependent on the enzyme concentration. Celluclast 1.5L with medium concentration exhibited the highest viscosity. Varying the enzyme concentration also influenced the molecular weight distribution. High molecular weight (M(w)) pectin (1.65 × 10(6) g/mol) was obtained when the medium concentration was used. Overall, the study clearly reflects the importance of taking into consideration the amount of cellulytic enzyme added in order to determine the final quality of pectin.
Keywords: enzyme concentration; galacturonic acid; gold kiwifruit; molecular weight; pectin; pectin extraction; viscosity.