Ultrasound‐assisted extraction of tamarind xyloglucan: an effective approach to reduce the viscosity and improve the α‐amylase inhibition of xyloglucan

Abstract BACKGROUND Water extraction (WE) is the classical extraction method for tamarind xyloglucan (XyG), but its low yield, high viscosity and poor dispersion in aqueous solution are not conducive to the industrial applications. To promote the industrial application of tamarind XyG, an ultrasonic‐assisted extraction (UAE) method for extracting low‐viscosity XyG from tamarind kernel powder was proposed. RESULTS The yield of UAE‐XyG was higher (502.33 ± 0.036 g kg −1 ) than that of WE‐XyG (163.43 ± 0.085 g kg −1 ). UAE reduced the molecular weight, monosaccharide content and apparent viscosity of XyG. The hypoglycemic experiment in vitro showed that UAE‐XyG had a stronger inhibitory effect on α ‐amylase activity than WE‐XyG, but its glucose dialysis retardation index was lower. CONCLUSION In sum, UAE is a type of extraction method that could effectively improve the yield of XyG and reduce its viscosity to expand its application without reducing its physiological activity. UAE exhibits an excellent potential in the extraction of XyG. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.