Quality of Irradiated Alfalfa Sprouts

Qualityof Irradiated Alfalfa Sprouts

Journal of Food Protection: Vol. 64, No. 10, pp. 1574-1578
Xuetong Fan and Donald W. Thayer
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Eastern RegionalResearch Center

Abstract-Alfalfa(Medicago sativa L.) sprouts were irradiated with gamma rays at doses of0, 0.85, 1.71, and 2.57 kGy at 5°C, then stored at 6°C for 14 days.Antioxidant power, total ascorbic acid (TAA) (ascorbic acid plus dehydroascorbicacid), carotenoid, chlorophyll, and color were measured at 1, 7, and 14 days ofstorage. Antioxidant power increased linearly with radiation dose at both 1 and7 days of storage. Irradiation had minimal effect on TAA content when comparedwith the decrease in TAA content during storage. Carotenoid content of sproutsirradiated at 1.71 and 2.57 kGy was higher than that of control at 7 days ofstorage. Irradiation did not have a consistent effect on chlorophyll content orcolor.