Comparison of Enzyme-assisted and Ultrasound-assisted Extraction of Albumin from Defatted Rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum L.) Seed

Abstract

Rambutan fruit is a popular crop widely cultivated in South East Asia. Rambutan seed is an important residue in fruit processing industry. Lipid extraction from rambutan seed has widely been reported while study on protein profile of rambutan seed has not been considered. Our preliminary study showed that albumin was the major protein group in rambutan seed. In this study, enzyme-assisted and ultrasound-assisted extraction of albumin from defatted rambutan seed was compared. On the basis of kinetic model of first order extraction, the extraction rate constant of the ultrasound-assisted extraction was 17.4 times faster than that of the enzyme-assisted extraction. However, the maximum albumin content in the extract from enzyme-assisted extraction was 3.6% higher than that from ultrasound-assisted extraction. Both the extraction methods did not modify functional properties of the rambutan seed albumin in comparison with the conventional extraction.