Proteomic analysis of coffee grains exposed to different drying process

Abstract

Many biochemical events occur inside grains during post-harvest processes. Several methods have been developed to relate the chemical composition of the coffee grain to the beverage quality, including identification of possible molecular markers for flavor characterizing. This study was aimed at evaluating the changes in the proteomic profile of pulped and natural C. arabica grains dried in a yard or dryer at 60 °C. It was observed that fruits dried in a dryer at 60 °C showed an altered proteomic profile, with a reduction in the most abundant proteins compared to those yard-dried grains. Among the identified proteins, those involved in the metabolism of sugars and stress response were highlighted. Results have shown that post-harvest processes that impact coffee quality are related to changes in protein abundance, indicating that proteomic analysis may be effective in the identification of biochemical changes in coffee grains subjected to different post-harvest processes.