Pectinesterase extraction from Mexican lime (Citrus aurantifolia Swingle) and prickly pear (Opuntia ficus indica L.) peels

Extracts from Mexican lime (Citrus aurantifolia Swingle) and prickly pear (Opuntia ficus indica L.) peels were tested for their pectinesterase activity. A factorial design was applied in this study as a method for enzyme extraction in which the variables were the source of enzyme (prickly pear and Mexican lime peels) and the NaCl solution concentration (0–3.0 M). In all cases, enzyme extracts obtained using the same NaCl concentration from lime peel showed higher activity than extracts from prickly pear peel. NaCl concentration influenced the pectinesterase extraction process in both cases. Maximum enzyme activities were obtained with NaCl 0.5 M and 1.0 M for Mexican lime and prickly pear peels, respectively.