Comparison of Phenols Content and Antioxidant Activity of Fruits from Different Maturity Stages of Ribes stenocarpum Maxim

Tracking the Variations in Trace Elements, Some Nutrients, Phenolics, and Anthocyanins in Grewia asiatica L. (Phalsa) at Different Fruit Development Stages

Grewia asiatica L. (phalsa) is a very prevalent berry in Pakistan and is consumed extensively as raw or in the form of juice. Here, for the first time, we assessed phalsa from Pakistan in terms of variations in macro and micro minerals, nutrients, and bio-active phyto-constituents including total phenolic and anthocyanin contents at different fruit developmental stages. It was found that the sugars in phalsa increased from D1 (small at the initial fruit setting stage) to D6 development stage (fully ripened fruit) where sugars at D5 (near to fully ripe) and D6 stages were many times greater than at D1, D2 (unripe close to full-size completion), D3 (close to semi ripe), and D4 stage (semi ripened and full-size attainment). Total acidity of was declined in all developmental stages, where the D1 stage displayed maximum and D6 with the lowest acidity. Ascorbic acid was decreased from D1 to D2 and then increased gradually from D3 to D5 stages. At the D6 stage, again a steep decline in ascorbic acid was observed. The total phenolics (mg gallic acid equivalents/100g) at stage D6 were higher (136.02 ± 1.17), whereas D1 being the lowermost in total phenolic content (79.89 ± 1.72). For anthocyanins (mg/100g), an increasing pattern of changes was observed in all stages of phalsa fruit where the D1 stage showed lower (13.97 ± 4.84) anthocyanin contents which then increased gradually at stage D2 (67.79 ± 6.73), but increased sharply at D3 (199.66 ± 4.90), D4 (211.02 ± 18.85), D5 (328.41 ±14.96) and D6 (532.30 ± 8.51) stages. A total of four anthocyanins such as cyanidin, delphidine-3-glucoside, pelargonidin, and malvidin in phalsa were identified using HPLC procedures, and a significant > 90 % DPPH inhibition in phalsa was observed at the D5 and D6 development stages. The macro and micro minerals including Ni, Zn, Fe, Ca, Cu, Mg, Na, P, and K contents were decreased from initial (D1) stage to the final (D6) development stage, while only Fe displayed an increasing trend from the initial to final fruit development stages (D1-D6). Conclusively, these findings could be of great interest for patients who are intended to consume phalsa as adjuvant therapy against diabetes and metabolic syndromes and other diseases involving reactive oxygen species with minimum metal toxicity.

Antioxidant Activity Analysis of Native Actinidia arguta Cultivars

Kiwiberry (Actinidia arguta) is a perennial fruit tree belonging to the family Actinidiaceae. Kiwiberries are known to have an extremely high concentration of sugars, phenolics, flavonoids, and vitamin C, and possess delicious taste and health-promoting properties. Numerous studies have focused on kiwiberry fruits, demonstrating that they possess a higher phytochemical content and greater antioxidant activities than other berry fruits. The purpose of this study was to compare the phytochemical content and antioxidant potential of leaf, stem, root, and fruit extracts from twelve kiwiberry cultivars grown in Wonju, Korea, characterized by a Dwa climate (Köppen climate classification). In most kiwiberry cultivars, the total phenolic (TPC) and total flavonoid (TFC) phytochemical content was significantly higher in leaf and stem tissues, while the roots exhibited higher antioxidant activity. In fruit tissues, the TPC and TFC were higher in unripe and ripe kiwiberry fruits, respectively, and antioxidant activity was generally higher in unripe than ripe fruit across most of the cultivars. Based on our results, among the 12 kiwiberry cultivars, cv. Daebo and cv. Saehan have a significantly higher phytochemical content and antioxidant activity in all of the tissue types, thus having potential as a functional food and natural antioxidant.

Nutritionally Important Pro-Health Active Ingredients and Antioxidant Properties of Fruits and Fruit Juice of Selected Biennial Fruiting Rubus idaeus L. Cultivars

Raspberry fruits are an important source of many biologically active chemical compounds exerting nutritional and pro-health effects. The study presents a comparative analysis of nutritionally important bioactive chemical compounds-polyphenols; flavonoids, including anthocyanins; vitamin C; amino acids; fatty acids; and primary metabolites-contained in the fruits of three biennial fruiting cultivars, R. idaeus 'Glen Ample', 'Laszka', and 'Radziejowa', i.e., common cultivars in Poland and Europe. The antioxidant activity of fresh fruits and juice was determined with five methods. The analyses revealed the strong free radical scavenging potential of the fruits and juice, confirmed by the high concentration of nutrients, e.g., polyphenols, anthocyanins, vitamin C, amino acids, and fatty acids. The antioxidant activity of the juice determined with the ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and OH radical methods was from 2.5 to 4.0 times higher than that of the fruits. The following orders of total polyphenol contents were established in the analyzed cultivars: 'Glen Ample' < 'Laszka' < 'Radziejowa' in the fruits and 'Glen Ample' < 'Radziejowa' < 'Laszka' in the juice. The highest antioxidant activity was exhibited by the 'Radziejowa' fruits. Given their high content of dietary fiber, the fruits of the analyzed raspberry cultivars can be consumed by dieting subjects. The concentrations of vitamin C (28-34 mg/100 g) and anthocyanins (20-34 mg/100 g) indicate the biological and pharmacological activity of these fruits. The main unsaturated fatty acids in the fruits were gamma-linoleic acid (C18:2n6c) and alpha-linolenic acid (C18:3n3), which neutralize excess free radicals. The amino acids nutritionally essential to humans were dominated by leucine, arginine, and phenylalanine. This is the first comparative analysis of the antioxidant activity of fruits and juice and the contents of selected active compounds in the fruits of biennial fruiting cultivars of R. idaeus, i.e., a highly commercialized crop in Europe.

Total Polyphenol Content, Antioxidant Activity, and Individual Phenolic Composition of Different Edible Parts of 4 Sweet Potato Cultivars

The quest to determine and use polyphenolic compounds present in fruits and vegetables as natural antioxidants has recently attracted much attention due to their beneficial health effects. In this study, the total polyphenol content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), total anthocyanin content (TAC), antioxidant activity (AA), and individual polyphenol components of Simon No. 1, Yuzi No. 7, Shangshu 19, and Pushu 32 sweet potato cultivars (edible parts: leaf, stalk, stem, skin, and flesh) were investigated. TPC, TFC, and TAC values ranged from 440 ± 0.17-12080 ± 0.58 CAE mg/100 g DW, 94 ± 0.08-4210 ± 0.74 QE mg/100 g DW, and 7 ± 0.01-1010 ± 0.54 CGE mg/100 g DW, respectively. Yuzi No. 7 sweet potato cultivar contained significantly higher amounts of TPC, TFC, TAC, and AA in all its edible parts, followed by Pushu 32, Simon No. 1, and Shangshu 19 in that order. Regardless of the sweet potato cultivar used, TPC, TFC, and TAC of sweet potato leaves were significantly higher than those of other edible parts. High-performance liquid chromatography revealed 19 individual phenolic compounds. In general, 3,5-di- O-caffeoylquinic acid, astragalin, and cyanidin were the predominant phenolic acid, flavonoid, and anthocyanin compounds, respectively. The correlation analysis suggested that higher AA could be attributed to higher polyphenol content. Based on our results, edible parts of Yuzi No. 7 sweet potato cultivar presented the highest amounts of polyphenol content and AA suggesting the possibility of utilizing this cultivar by farmers and the food industry as a functional food product.

Cross-Species Comparison of Fruit-Metabolomics to Elucidate Metabolic Regulation of Fruit Polyphenolics Among Solanaceous Crops

Many solanaceous crops are an important part of the human daily diet. Fruit polyphenolics are plant specialized metabolites that are recognized for their human health benefits and their defensive role against plant abiotic and biotic stressors. Flavonoids and chlorogenates are the major polyphenolic compounds found in solanaceous fruits that vary in quantity, physiological function, and structural diversity among and within plant species. Despite their biological significance, the elucidation of metabolic shifts of polyphenols during fruit ripening in different fruit tissues, has not yet been well-characterized in solanaceous crops, especially at a cross-species and cross-cultivar level. Here, we performed a cross-species comparison of fruit-metabolomics to elucidate the metabolic regulation of fruit polyphenolics from three representative crops of Solanaceae (tomato, eggplant, and pepper), and a cross-cultivar comparison among different pepper cultivars (Capsicum annuum cv.) using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). We observed a metabolic trade-off between hydroxycinnamates and flavonoids in pungent pepper and anthocyanin-type pepper cultivars and identified metabolic signatures of fruit polyphenolics in each species from each different tissue-type and fruit ripening stage. Our results provide additional information for metabolomics-assisted crop improvement of solanaceous fruits towards their improved nutritive properties and enhanced stress tolerance.

The protective role of hawthorn fruit extract against high salt-induced hypertension in Dahl salt-sensitive rats: impact on oxidative stress and metabolic patterns

In the present study, the renal-protective effect of hawthorn fruit extract (HW) on high-salt hypertension and its effect on metabolic patterns are determined. High salt causes hypertension in Dahl salt sensitive (SS) rats, while HW can effectively attenuate high-salt induced hypertension, and, various antihypertensive ingredients of HW have also been successfully identified using GC/MS. Of note, the biochemical assay indicates that HW significantly increases the concentration of nitric oxide (NO) and decreases the concentration of H2O2 and malonaldehyde. Especially, HW increases the activities of NO synthase and catalase in the renal medulla. Simultaneously, the renal cortex and medulla, harvested from SS rats, are used to perform the metabolomics analysis, and then, 11 and 8 differential metabolites are identified in the renal medulla and cortex with the HW gavage, respectively. All differential metabolites are then used to perform the pathway enrichment analysis. The results show that many metabolic pathways are enriched in both the renal medulla and cortex, especially those in the medulla including 23 enriched pathways. Therefore, it provides evidence that HW confers an antioxidant effect on high-salt induced hypertension and dramatically alters the metabolic patterns of SS rats, and the antihypertensive ingredients of HW also further indicate that it may be used as a nutritional supplemental therapeutic drug to protect against high-salt induced hypertension in the renal medulla.