Preparation of an antimicrobial extract from seeds, pulp and peelings of philippine calamansi (citrus mitis) fruit against escherichia coli

• Main Authors: Cubias, Jose Gerald R., Jr., Tagacay, Angelo Christopher B., Ramirez, Paolo amancius P.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2014
• Subjects: Anti-infective agents; Chemical Engineering
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_bachelors/10771
• Institution: De La Salle University

This study aims to develop an antimicrobial extract from waste products of calamansi (Citrus mitis) juice production using a solid-liquid extraction process utilizing glycerin as solvent. In this study, the wastes used, which comprises of calamansi seeds, pulp and peelings, came from a juice company, Mapagmahal Foods in Las Pinas. The extract was evaluated for its antimicrobial activity against E. coli using MIC and quantified for the amount in og of the suspected flavonoids present per mL of the extracts using HPLC UV/Vis. Seeds, pulp and peelings of fresh calamansi were dried together and then powdered. The powdered sample was wrapped in silk screen and then submerged in a beaker containing glycerin before placing in a pressure cooker that contains 99.7% USP grade glycerin at 140⁰C and at approximately 15 psig, which was the extracting solvent and part of the final product. The solid-liquid ratios used in the extraction process were 1:1, 1:2, 1:3 and 1:4. The disc diffusion test results shows that the extract from the 1:3 solid-solvent ratio yielded positive zones of inhibitions. Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations (MIC) of the extracts are all at a dilution of 1:6. The extract from the 1:3 ratio does not have any growth over 24 hours when streaked on sterile agar media. This indicates that the extract from the 1:3 ratio at the dilution ratio of 1:6 killed the test organism. The average flavonoid content in og/mL based on the standards for the extract from the 1:2 ratio containing quercetin, naringin and hesperidin are 516.64, 510.80 and 1,953.84 respectively. The extract from the 1:3 ratio contains 512.39, 406.46 and 1,102.01 respectively and for the extract from the 1:4 ratio, 512.29, 380.77 and 1,097.42 respectively.