Enhancement of DPPH-radical Scavenging Activity in Heat-processed Sugarcane Molasses

The effects of heating temperature and time on browning, DPPH-radical scavenging activity and polyphenol-like activity of molasses from sugarcane were investigated. The browning, DPPH-radical scavenging activity and polyphenol-like activity of molasses heated to between 120°C and 160°C were increased in comparison with unheated molasses. The browning of molasses heated to 120°C and 140°C increased with heating time, and was nearly 9.5 times greater than unheated molasses after heating for 60 minutes. The browning of molasses heated to 160°C exponentially increased after heating for 10 minutes, and was nearly 16.7 times greater than unheated molasses after heating for 20 minutes. The DPPH-radical scavenging activity of molasses heated to 120°C for 50 minutes, 140°C for 10 minutes, and 160°C for 10 minutes was four times greater than that of unheated molasses. The alterations in DPPH-radical scavenging activity were similar to the polyphenol-like activity pattern with heat-processing. The heated molasses with the highest polyphenol-like activity, processed at 160°C for 20 minutes, showed stronger antimutagenicity than unheated molasses. These results indicate that the heat-processing of sugarcane molasses is a viable method for the enhancement of food functions in sugarcane molasses.