Graduate Thesis Or Dissertation
 

Chemical attributes of muskmelon related to texture

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https://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/concern/graduate_thesis_or_dissertations/h702q930g

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  • The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of a number of physical and chemical attributes upon muskmelon texture as described by sensory evaluation. Measurements of turgor pressure, percent moisture, total sugars, alcohol-insoluble-solids, three pectic fractions, total pectic materials, starch and cellulose were performed on 50 melons. The melons were purchased at random from a retail market in Corvallis, Oregon, over a five-week period during July and August, 1966. Subjective evaluation of textural quality was provided by a five-membered panel employing a pre-tested ballot. On five-point scales, judges rated resistance to cutting, resistance to biting, resistance to crushing, crispness, fibrousness and sweetness. Simple and multiple correlation analyses were performed to elucidate relationships between the objective and subjective observations. Considerable variation was found among melons for most of the attributes. Variation was largest in the case of water-soluble pectic substances and cellulose and least for alcohol-insoluble-solids. According to the results of this study, melon texture is determined to a great extent by the type and amount of cell wall constituents. Significant multiple correlations were found between cell wall constituents, cellulose and protopectin, and sensory panel scores for resistance to cutting, resistance to biting, resistance to crushing and crispness. Fruit maturity, as inferred from starch and protopectin content, also exerted an effect upon texture. Significant multiple correlations were found between starch and protopectin and panel scores for resistance to cutting, resistance to crushing and crispness. Although not specifically related to texture, a significant and positive simple correlation was found between total sugars and sweetness. Similarly, significant negative correlations were found between starch and total sugars and starch and sweetness. Turgor pressure, percent moisture, alcohol-insoluble-solids, total sugar, water-soluble pectic substances, pectates-pectinates and total pectic materials were found not to be reliable indicators of muskmelon texture. Although turgor pressure did not exhibit a significant relationship to any textural aspects, a trend was observed in the data. As a result of this observation and difficulty encountered in measuring turgor pressure, further work with this variable is recommended. Proximate composition of the melons analyzed compared favorably with published data. This observation lends confidence to the methods and analyses employed. Large standard deviations calculated for some of the attributes measured emphasize the extent of variation among melons, the difficulty in assessing texture in an objective manner and the problem encountered in marketing and purchasing the fresh fruit.
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