Characterization of Langra Mango Peel Powder and Assessment of Its Prebiotic and Antioxidant Potential

Abstract

The possibility of developing waste by-products of food processing into functional food additives along with probiotics is an interesting avenue to research. This study investigated the nutritional and functional attributes of dried mango peel powder (MPP) of Langra cultivar and its putative potential to act as a prebiotic in the presence of two probiotic strains Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus NCDC347 and Limosilactobacillus fermentum NCDC143 @ 2.5 & 5% after 24 to 48 h fermentation. Proximate analysis revealed that the MPP contains 6.45 % moisture, 6.34 % protein, 3.88 % fat, 2.50 % ash, 32.86 % crude dietary fiber, and 47.97 % of total carbohydrate content. MP displayed substantial antioxidant potential with 54.6% DPPH inhibitory activity, 15.67  mg GAE/g TPC, 8.88 mg QuE/g TFC, OHC of 1.47  g oil/g, and a WHC of 4.7  g water/g. MPP could selectively stimulate the growth of two probiotic strains over enteric bacteria. It was revealed that a combination of MPP @5% with L. fermentum NCDC143 after 24 h fermentation had the best in vitro prebiotic activity score of 3.35  and 3.53  against Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 and Enterococcus faecalis NCDC114, respectively. The prebiotic activity score of MPP was better than commercial prebiotic malto-dextrin for all combinations of probiotic and enteric strains tested. The percentage DPPH inhibition activity of MPP increased during fermentation with L. fermentum NCDC143, highlighting its role as a source of antioxidants. These findings contribute to the formulation of synbiotic products that are able to maintain selected healthy microbiota in the human gut.