Structural effect of polygalacturonase modified pectin on release of volatile compounds from oil in water emulsion

Pectin is a branched polysaccharide used in food emulsions to control the texture and flavor of foods. This study investigated the release behavior of various volatiles from oil-in-water (O/W) emulsions prepared with polygalacturonase (PG) to evaluate the effect of the pectin structure on the release behavior of eight volatile compounds. Enzymatic modification by PG effectively disrupted the backbone structure of pectin and significantly reduced its molecular weight. Evidently, PG-treated pectin led to a notable reduction in emulsion viscosity, with a tenfold decrease from 29.71 to 2.01 mPa⋅s, which subsequently favored the retention of hydrophilic flavor components. These results suggest that the PG-treated pectin forms a hydrophilic emulsion system enhancing hydrogen bonding between the alcohols and emulsions while promoting the release of other hydrophobic aroma compounds. Our findings indicate that the application of PG-hydrolyzed pectin can effectively control the release of target hydrophilic aroma compounds in the complex food emulsion. • Pectin-containing O/W emulsions hinder the release of volatile aroma compounds. • Polygalacturonase (PG) hydrolysis effectively disrupts the structure of O/W emulsions. • PG-treated O/W emulsions promote the releasing of hydrophobic aroma compounds. • PG-treated O/W emulsions enhance the retention of volatile alcohols.