Photoacoustic analysis of blue corn pigments in nixtamalized flours

Anthocyanins are natural pigments with antioxidant properties, and recently they have received more attention because these pigments are consumed in nutritional diets with therapeutic effects. In addition, anthocyanins are important in the treatment of diseases caused by oxidation of free radicals in live systems, which could be the cause of chronic diseases, like cancer. Anthocyanins, found in flowers and some fruits, are also present in blue Mexican corn (Zea mays L.). In this work, photoacoustic spectroscopic, chemical and spectrophotometric analyses of nixtamalized blue corn flours are presented. Different Ca(OH)(2) concentrations were used in the fractioned nixtamalization process, and the total anthocyanin concentrations of these flours were obtained by chemical extraction of these pigments and compared with relative intensity of optical absorption obtained by photoacoustic spectroscopy.