Evaluation of matcha tea quality index using portable NIR spectroscopy coupled with chemometric algorithms

BACKGROUND

The study reports a portable near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy system coupled with chemometric algorithms for prediction of tea polyphenols and amino acids in order to index matcha tea quality.

RESULTS

Spectral data were preprocessed by standard normal variate (SNV), mean center (MC) and first-order derivative (1^st D) tests. The data were then subjected to full spectral partial least squares (PLS) and four variable selection algorithms, such as random frog partial least square (RF-PLS), synergy interval partial least square (Si-PLS), genetic algorithm-partial least square (GA-PLS) and competitive adaptive reweighted sampling partial least square (CARS-PLS). RF-PLS was established and identified as the optimum model based on the values of the correlation coefficients of prediction (R_P ), root mean square error of prediction (RMSEP) and residual predictive deviation (RPD), which were 0.8625, 0.82% and 2.13, and 0.9662, 0.14% and 3.83, respectively, for tea polyphenols and amino acids. The content range of tea polyphenols and amino acids in matcha tea samples was 8.51-14.58% and 2.10-3.75%, respectively. The quality of matcha tea was successfully classified with an accuracy rate of 83.33% as qualified, unqualified and excellent grade.

CONCLUSION

The proposed method can be used as a rapid, accurate and non-destructive platform to classify various matcha tea samples based on the ratio of tea polyphenols to amino acids. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry.

Unique antioxidant effects of herbal leaf tea and stem tea from Moringa oleifera L. especially on superoxide anion radical generation systems

This study aimed to investigate the unique antioxidative effects of Japanese moringa products, herbal leaf tea and stem tea, using established free radical assays, focusing on superoxide anion (O₂^-) radical generation systems. Hot-water extracts from moringa teas resulted in different but lower scavenging activities than Trolox in four synthetic free radical models. Interestingly, these extracts further showed higher O₂^- radical scavenging effects than Trolox in the phenazine methosulfate-NADH-nitroblue tetrazolium and xanthine oxidase assay systems. Incubating human neutrophils in the presence of these tea extracts rather than Trolox effectively suppressed cellular O₂^- radical generation. Among the eight known phenolic constituents of moringa leaves, caffeic acid and chlorogenic acid may be responsible for the O₂^-specific radical scavenging capacity stronger than that of Trolox. These results suggest that moringa herbal teas are a good source of natural antioxidants for preventing O₂^- radical-mediated disorders. Abbreviations: O₂^-: superoxide anion; ROS: reactive oxygen species; H₂O₂: hydrogen peroxide; XOD: xanthine oxidase; DPPH: 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl; ABTS⁺: 2,2'-azinobis(2-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) cation; CPZ⁺: chlorpromazine cation; PMS: phenazine methosulfate; NBT: nitroblue tetrazolium; PMA: phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate.