A Concise Review on Taro Mucilage: Extraction Techniques, Chemical Composition, Characterization, Applications, and Health Attributes
Mansuri M. Tosif,
Agnieszka Najda,
Joanna Klepacka,
Aarti Bains,
Prince Chawla,
Ankur Kumar,
Minaxi Sharma,
Kandi Sridhar,
Surya Prakash Gautam,
Ravinder Kaushik
Affiliations
Mansuri M. Tosif
Department of Food Technology and Nutrition, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara 144411, Punjab, India
Agnieszka Najda
Department of Vegetable and Herbal Crops, University of Life Science in Lublin, Doświadczalna Street 51A, 20280 Lublin, Poland
Joanna Klepacka
Department of Commodity Science and Food Analysis, Faculty of Food Science, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, Oczapowskiego 2, 10719 Olsztyn, Poland
Aarti Bains
Department of Biotechnology, CT Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, South Campus, Jalandhar 144020, Punjab, India
Prince Chawla
Department of Food Technology and Nutrition, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara 144411, Punjab, India
Ankur Kumar
Central Instrumental Lab, National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management, Sec-56, Plot-97, Kundli, Sonipat 131028, Haryana, India
Minaxi Sharma
Department of Applied Biology, University of Science & Technology, Techno City, Killing Road, Baridua 9th Mile 793101, Meghalaya, India
Kandi Sridhar
UMR1253, Science et Technologie du Lait et de l’œuf, INRAE, L’Institut Agro, Agrocampus Ouest, 65 Rue de Saint Brieuc, F-35042 Rennes, France
Surya Prakash Gautam
Department of Biotechnology, CT Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, South Campus, Jalandhar 144020, Punjab, India
Ravinder Kaushik
School of Health Sciences, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Dehradun 248007, Uttrakhand, India
Taro (Colocasia esculenta) is an important source of carbohydrates as an energy source and is used as a staple food throughout the world. It is rich in mucilage and starch granules, making it a highly digestible ingredient. Mucilage can act as a matrix and a thickening, binding, emulsifying, or foaming agent in food, pharmaceutical, and several other fields of research. Moreover, mucilage can be extracted from several living organisms and has excellent functional properties, such as water-holding, oil-holding, and swelling capacities. Therefore, these remarkable functional properties make mucilage a promising ingredient with possible industrial applications. Furthermore, several extraction techniques, including enzyme-assisted, ultrasonication, microwave-assisted, aquatic, and solvent extraction methods, are used to obtain quantitative amounts of taro mucilage. Coldwater extraction with ethanol precipitation can be considered an effective and cost-effective technique to obtain high-quality mucilage with suitable industrial applications, whereas the ultrasonication method is more expensive but results in a higher amount of mucilage than other emerging techniques. Mucilage can also be used as a fat replacer or reducer, dye remover, coating agent, and antioxidating agent. Therefore, in this review, we detail the key properties related to the extraction techniques, chemical composition, and characterization of taro mucilage, along with its suitable applications and health benefits.