Skip to main content
ARS Home » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #224090
Title: Seasonal and postharvest temperature impact on novel orange-fleshed honey dew fruit antioxidants

Author
item Lester, Gene
item HODGES, D. MARK - AGRI-FOOD CANADA

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/18/2008
Publication Date: 1/20/2008
Citation: Lester, G.E., Hodges, D. 2008. Seasonal and postharvest temperature impact on novel orange-fleshed honey dew fruit antioxidants [abstract]. Southern Region American Society for Horticultural Science Annual Meeting, February 2-4, 2008, Dallas, Texas. HortScience. 43(3):A615.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Orange-fleshed cantaloupe fruit (Cucumis melo L. Reticulatus group) continues to raise food-safety concerns due to attachment of enteric bacteria to sites on the netted surface inaccessible to sanitation. Non-netted, orange-fleshed honey dew fruit (Cucumis melo L. Inodorous group) vs. cantaloupe offers a safer and a healthier (nutritional content) option. Some commercially available non-netted orange-fleshed honey dew genotype fruits were compared for antioxidants associated with storage quality following autumn and spring production cycles, harvested at abscission (mature) and stored for up to 24 d at 5 degrees C or 10 degrees C. Spring versus autumn production generally yielded higher overall levels of 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (folic acid), calcium, malondialdehyde (MDA), and lipophilic total antioxidant capacities. ‘Orange Delight’ and ‘Orange Dew’, were generally superior to ‘Honey Gold’, ‘Temptation’ and a breeding line as they consistently demonstrated some of the highest levels of total ascorbic acid, beta-carotene, and potassium. ‘Orange Delight’ and ‘Orange Dew’ were also among the cultivars with the highest activities of ascorbate peroxidase (EC 1.15.1.1), catalase (EC1.11.1.6), and superoxide dismutase (EC 1.15.1.1). These two cultivars also exhibited the least increase in MDA (i.e., lipid peroxidation) during storage, indicating antioxidant levels limited oxidative-related senescence compared to the other genotypes. Results indicate that there are significant differences in human-health- and storage quality-related phytochemical profiles between orange-fleshed honey dew cultivars, and that high antioxidant levels are associated with reduced lipid peroxidation during fruit cold storage.