TY - JOUR

T1 - Impact of rotational cold plasma treatment on polyphenol oxidase inhibition, bioactive compounds, and aroma profile of ginger

AU - Zargarchi, Sina

AU - Weber, Maria

AU - Hillebrand, Silke

AU - Gök, Recep

AU - Esatbeyoglu, Tuba

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2026 The Author(s)

PY - 2026/1/15

Y1 - 2026/1/15

N2 - This study investigates the effects of low-pressure cold plasma treatment (CPT; power: 10, 50, and 90 W, pressure: 0.4, 0.65, and 0.9 mbar, and time: 1, 15.5, and 30 min) on ginger quality using a rotary chamber system. All CPTs resulted in a reduction of polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity. The highest PPO residual activity was observed after treatment with 10 W,1 min, 0.4 mbar without rotation. A significant reduction of 38.15 % in water activity, a key parameter influencing shelf life, was observed in comparison to the non-treated sample (p < 0.05) after CPT (50 W, 0.65 mbar, 15.5 min, and with rotation). High-performance liquid chromatography analysis showed the highest content of 14.68 mg/g 6-gingerol after CPT (10 W, 0.4 mbar, 1 min). 8-Gingerol and 10-shogaol appeared to be more stable during CPT. E-nose analysis indicated that CP simultaneously degraded key volatiles while creating new aromatic compounds. GC-MS analysis further revealed that CPT changed the levels of the characteristic terpenes and produced volatile acids and aldehydes. No new functional groups were formed, according to ATR-FTIR analysis, suggesting that CP induced only minor modifications to the molecular structure at the surface.

AB - This study investigates the effects of low-pressure cold plasma treatment (CPT; power: 10, 50, and 90 W, pressure: 0.4, 0.65, and 0.9 mbar, and time: 1, 15.5, and 30 min) on ginger quality using a rotary chamber system. All CPTs resulted in a reduction of polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity. The highest PPO residual activity was observed after treatment with 10 W,1 min, 0.4 mbar without rotation. A significant reduction of 38.15 % in water activity, a key parameter influencing shelf life, was observed in comparison to the non-treated sample (p < 0.05) after CPT (50 W, 0.65 mbar, 15.5 min, and with rotation). High-performance liquid chromatography analysis showed the highest content of 14.68 mg/g 6-gingerol after CPT (10 W, 0.4 mbar, 1 min). 8-Gingerol and 10-shogaol appeared to be more stable during CPT. E-nose analysis indicated that CP simultaneously degraded key volatiles while creating new aromatic compounds. GC-MS analysis further revealed that CPT changed the levels of the characteristic terpenes and produced volatile acids and aldehydes. No new functional groups were formed, according to ATR-FTIR analysis, suggesting that CP induced only minor modifications to the molecular structure at the surface.

KW - Aroma profile

KW - ATR-FTIR

KW - e-nose

KW - Enzyme inhibition

KW - Phenolic compound

KW - Spice

KW - Zingiber officinale

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=105026653009&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.lwt.2026.118994

DO - 10.1016/j.lwt.2026.118994

M3 - Article

VL - 240

JO - LWT

JF - LWT

SN - 0023-6438

M1 - 118994

ER -