ARS | Publication request: Range of black raspberry (Rubus occidentalis L.) anthocyanin content from 26 seedling populations

Submitted to: Annual Meeting of the Institute of Food Technologists
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: February 14, 2011
Publication Date: June 10, 2011
Citation: Lee, J., Dossett, M., Finn, C.E. 2011. Range of black raspberry (Rubus occidentalis L.) anthocyanin content from 26 seedling populations. Annual Meeting of the Institute of Food Technologists. Abstract 089-22.

Technical Abstract: Black raspberry (Rubus occidentalis L.) has long been recognized as a rich source of anthocyanins. Despite renewed interest in this crop for its potential health benefits, its range of anthocyanin, and other phenolics, content has not been well examined. Our objective was to establish baseline values for significant phytochemicals from a large number of black raspberry genotypes (n = 190) over multiple years, which will become a focal step towards determining the feasibility of new cultivars, innovative product development, and nutraceutical usages. Twenty-six sibling families resulting from crosses were established in a research field. They were in a randomized complete block design with four replications each, which consisted of one to eight sibling seedlings, depending on the number of seedlings available. Berries were analyzed by HPLC-DAD or HPLC-MS, under conditions previously published by our laboratory. Peaks were monitored at 280 and 520 nm. Identification was based on UV-VIS spectra, retention times, mass spectra, then quantified by DAD with cyanidin-3-glucoside. Here we present anthocyanin concentration and profiles, as well as total phenolics, from the fruit of 26 black raspberry seedling populations (190 samples over two growing seasons) derived from cultivated and wild parents. There was a greater than two-fold difference in total anthocyanin concentration between the lowest and highest population’s pigmentation (ranging from 244.8 - 541.3 mg·100 mL-1). The relative amounts of the two major anthocyanins (cyanidin-3-rutinoside and cyanidin-3-xylosylrutinoside) in black raspberry fruit were significantly different. Total phenolics were found to vary less (206.7 - 330.4 mg·100 mL-1). This information will provide a valuable baseline for researchers interested in studying the health effects of these compounds, product developers in the nutraceutical market, and breeders interested in developing new cultivars with improved fruit chemistry traits.