The antioxidative-activity stability of aloe vera (Aloe vera var. chinensis) instant during storage

Aloe vera contains a phenolic compound that has bioactive activity. Previous research showed that microencapsulation of aloe vera powder with maltodextrin as an encapsulation agent produced instant aloe vera with high antioxidative activity. The problem was the hygroscopic instant caused rapid moisture and oxygen absorption during storage, therefore decreasing the instant aloe vera antioxidative activity periodically. The aim of this research was to evaluate the antioxidative activity stability of instant aloe vera during storage. The processing of instant aloe vera through a reconstituted aloe vera powder with water with a ratio of 1:120 and then added with 2.5% maltodextrin as the encapsulating agent. The solution was then inserted into a spray dryer with an inlet temperature of 130oC, an outlet temperature of 103oC, and the flow rate of the solution is 350.0 mL/h. The resulted instant aloe vera was divided into 15 packs with a weight of 25 g, and each sample was wrapped with polyethylene plastic film with 0.80 mm thickness and then was stored at 25oC with a relative humidity of 75%. The sample was conducted in triplicate. The moisture content, and antioxidative activity that was based on the ability to capture 1,1-diphenyl-2- picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical (RSA) and lipid peroxidation inhibition were analyzed every week until the critical condition was achieved at a moisture level of 12%. The research showed that the radical scavenging activity (RSA) and lipid peroxidation inhibition of instant aloe vera before storage were 16.34±1.22% and 39.33±1.68%, respectively, whereas in the critical condition the RSA was 3.63±0.04% and the lipid peroxidation inhibition was 22.31±0.02%. Based on their antioxidative activity, the appropriate storage time of instant aloe vera was about 12 weeks in polyethylene plastic film of 0.08 mm thickness