After tomatoes, apples are the second most commonly enjoyed fruit around the world with over 7,500 varieties grown. Approximately 76 million tons of apples are produced globally every year, and half of all deciduous fruit trees (i.e., plants that shed fruit or leaves when they reach maturity) used for fruit production are apple trees. Apples are mainly grown by China, the U.S., Poland, Italy, and Turkey. To ensure the safe consumption of apple juice products, ISO 8128-1:1993—Apple Juice, Apple Juice Concentrates And Drinks Containing Apple Juice — Determination Of Patulin Content — Part 1: Method Using High-Performance Liquid Chromatography and ISO 8128-2:1993—Apple Juice, Apple Juice Concentrates And Drinks Containing Apple Juice — Determination Of Patulin Content — Part 2: Method Using Thin-Layer Chromatography specify methods to determine patulin contamination, which may jeopardize the profitability of apple producers and negatively affect human health.
What Is Patulin Contamination in Apples?
Patulin is a natural contaminant/pathogen in apple-based products, particularly apple juice and unfermented apple cider, since lower-grade or unfit apples are typically used for juice or cider processing. This pathogen is frequently found in the rotten tissues of apples. Patulin accumulation correlates with apparent symptoms of blue mold. Apple blue mold usually starts with the invasion of Penicillium expansum spores on the wounds of fresh apples. These wounds can occur from stem punctures, insect injuries, and bruises during the picking and handling operations in the apple orchard.
Once patulin is produced, conventional pasteurization only marginally reduces patulin in bottled apple juice. In such cases, the development of strategies to effectively control patulin contamination in apple products during processing is of great importance. The amount of patulin in apple products is considered as a measure of quality in regard to food safety standards/practices around the world and hence ISO 8128-1:1993 and ISO 8128-2:1993 provide methods to determine patulin content in apple juice.
The ISO 8128 Series for Apple Juice
The ISO 8128 Series for Apple Juice, Apple Juice Concentrates And Drinks Containing Apple Juice – Determination of Patulin Content has two parts. The first part, ISO 8128-1:1993 specifies a method using high performance liquid chromatography; the second part, ISO 8128-2:1993 specifies a method using thin layer chromatography.
What Is ISO 8128-1?
The principle of the method specified in ISO 8128-1:1993 is extraction of patulin from a test portion using ethyl acetate followed by partitioning of the extract with aqueous sodium carbonate solution, qualitative and quantitative determination of the patulin content by means of high-performance liquid chromatography using an ultraviolet detector. The limit of detection is 10 µg/l, based on 5 ml of ready-to-drink apple juice.
What Is ISO 8128-2?
The method specified in ISO 8128-2:1993 includes the extraction of patulin in a mixture of ethyl acetate and chloroform (3:2 by volume), filtration of the extract on a silica-gel column, and qualitative and quantitative determination by means of two-directional thin-layer chromatography. The spots are developed using a 3-methyl-2-benzothiazoline hydrazone (MBTH) hydrochloride solution. The limit of detection is 25 µg/l, ba.
Are Roses Related to Apples?
Genetically, the apple is thought to have originated from the rose in central and southern China some 40 million years ago perhaps because of a catastrophic event or climate change. It belongs to the Malus genus, just one of many genera in the rose family (Rosaceae). Besides apples, peaches, pears, cherries, strawberries, and plums are also part of the rose family. Unlike most fruit, however, the apple is a pome—formed by expansion of tissue at the base of its flowers. A pome consists of a central core that has usually five seeds and is surrounded by a thick fleshy outer layer. The genetic changes allowed the pome to swell and develop sugars and taste while keeping physical resemblance to a rose hip.
ISO 8128-1:1993—Apple Juice, Apple Juice Concentrates And Drinks Containing Apple Juice — Determination Of Patulin Content — Part 1: Method Using High-Performance Liquid Chromatography is available on the ANSI Webstore.
ISO 8128-2:1993—Apple Juice, Apple Juice Concentrates And Drinks Containing Apple Juice — Determination Of Patulin Content — Part 2: Method Using Thin-Layer Chromatography is available on the ANSI Webstore.
