High-pressure processing and thermal pasteurization of blueberry purée-based baby food differentially modulate polyphenol bioaccessibility and intestinal cell responses
Abstract
Proper processing of baby foods, ensuring both safety and the highest possible nutrient retention and bioaccessibility, is of particular importance for the health and development of infants and young children. In this study, blueberry purée-based baby food was subjected to conventional thermal pasteurization (TP) and high-pressure processing (HPP) at moderate temperature, and their effects on sensory quality and the availability of bioactive compounds were compared. Polyphenol stability and antioxidant bioaccessibility were evaluated during storage and simulated gastrointestinal digestion, while intestinal cell responses and prebiotic-related activity were assessed separately. HPP-treated purées showed significantly higher phenolic bioaccessibility, whereas differences in antioxidant bioaccessibility and anthocyanin recovery between treatments were not statistically significant. Caco-2 cell viability varied with treatment and incubation time, whereas intracellular reactive oxygen species levels were not significantly affected by processing treatment and decreased with incubation time. The effects of both preservation methods on microbial growth were dependent on bacterial group and incubation time. Positive PAS values were observed for Lactobacillus after both 24 and 48 h, whereas Bifidobacterium did not show a selective growth advantage over Enterobacteriaceae under the applied experimental conditions. Short-chain fatty acids remained below the detection threshold in the fermented purée samples and the inulin control, although several unsaturated fatty acids were quantifiable after fermentation in both processed purées. These results demonstrate that HPP and thermal pasteurization differentially modulate the functional properties of blueberry purée-based baby food and highlight the importance of preservation strategy selection in the development of foods intended for sensitive consumer groups.
Related
- Hox gene activity directs physical forces to differentially shape chick small and large intestinal epithelia
- Polarized macrophage-derived microvesicles differentially modulate intestinal barrier dysfunction and endoplasmic reticulum stress in ulcerative colitis.
- Prebiotic, probiotic, and chlorophyllin interventions differentially attenuate melphalan-induced intestinal injury and modulate gut metabolite profiles
- Electrophysiological Indices of Hierarchical Speech Processing Differentially Reflect the Comprehension of Speech in Noise
- Yeast β-glucan-mannan combinations in broiler diets: roles of processing and β-glucan solubility in growth performance, intestinal morphology, and caecal fermentation
BibTeX
@article{mazurkiewicz2026highpressure,
title = {{High-pressure processing and thermal pasteurization of blueberry purée-based baby food differentially modulate polyphenol bioaccessibility and intestinal cell responses}},
author = {Bozena Mazurkiewicz and Magdalena Matusiewicz and Elzbieta Wojcik-Gront and Tomasz Krucon and Witold Uhrynowski and Natalia Jeznach and Slawomir Jaworski},
journal = {Scientific Reports},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1038/s41598-026-74122-1},
url = {https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-026-74122-1},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - High-pressure processing and thermal pasteurization of blueberry purée-based baby food differentially modulate polyphenol bioaccessibility and intestinal cell responses
AU - Bozena Mazurkiewicz
AU - Magdalena Matusiewicz
AU - Elzbieta Wojcik-Gront
AU - Tomasz Krucon
AU - Witold Uhrynowski
AU - Natalia Jeznach
AU - Slawomir Jaworski
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/11
JO - Scientific Reports
DO - 10.1038/s41598-026-74122-1
UR - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-026-74122-1
AB - Proper processing of baby foods, ensuring both safety and the highest possible nutrient retention and bioaccessibility, is of particular importance for the health and development of infants and young children. In this study, blueberry purée-based baby food was subjected to conventional thermal pasteurization (TP) and high-pressure processing (HPP) at moderate temperature, and their effects on sensory quality and the availability of bioactive compounds were compared. Polyphenol stability and antioxidant bioaccessibility were evaluated during storage and simulated gastrointestinal digestion, while intestinal cell responses and prebiotic-related activity were assessed separately. HPP-treated purées showed significantly higher phenolic bioaccessibility, whereas differences in antioxidant bioaccessibility and anthocyanin recovery between treatments were not statistically significant. Caco-2 cell viability varied with treatment and incubation time, whereas intracellular reactive oxygen species levels were not significantly affected by processing treatment and decreased with incubation time. The effects of both preservation methods on microbial growth were dependent on bacterial group and incubation time. Positive PAS values were observed for Lactobacillus after both 24 and 48 h, whereas Bifidobacterium did not show a selective growth advantage over Enterobacteriaceae under the applied experimental conditions. Short-chain fatty acids remained below the detection threshold in the fermented purée samples and the inulin control, although several unsaturated fatty acids were quantifiable after fermentation in both processed purées. These results demonstrate that HPP and thermal pasteurization differentially modulate the functional properties of blueberry purée-based baby food and highlight the importance of preservation strategy selection in the development of foods intended for sensitive consumer groups.
SN - 2045-2322
ER -