ARS | Publication request: NUTRITIONAL COMPONENTS IN SELECT FLORIDA TROPICAL FRUITS

Submitted to: Southern Region of the American Society for Horticultural Science
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: February 1, 2006
Publication Date: July 1, 2006
Citation: Mahattanatawee, K., Baldwin, E., Goodner, K., Manthey, J., Luzio, G. 2006. Nutritional components in select Florida tropical fruits. HortScience. 40(3):504.

Technical Abstract: Fourteen tropical fruits from south Florida (red guava, white guava, carambola, red pitaya (red dragon), white pitaya (white dragon), mamey, sapodilla, lychee, longan, green mango, ripe mango, green papaya and ripe papaya) were evaluated for antioxidant activity, ascorbic acid (vitamin C), total fiber and pectin. ORAC (oxygen radical absorbance capacity) and DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl, radical scavenging activity) assays were used to determine antioxidant activity. The total soluble phenolics (TSP), ORAC, and DPPH ranged from 205.4 to 2316.7 'g gallic acid equivalent/g puree, 0.03 to 16.7 'mole Trolox equivalent/g puree and 2.1 to 620.2 µg gallic acid equivalent/g puree, respectively. Total ascorbic acid (TAA), total dietary fiber (TDF) and pectin ranged from 13.6 to 159.6 mg/100 g, 0.88 to 7.25 g/100 g and 0.2 to 1.04 g/100 g, respectively. The antioxidant activities, TSP, TAA, TDF and pectin appeared to be influenced by cultivar (papaya, guava and dragon fruit) and ripening stage (papaya and/or mango). Data demonstrate the potential benefits of several of these fruits for human health.