Published in

MDPI, Antioxidants, 3(9), p. 238, 2020

DOI: 10.3390/antiox9030238

Links

Tools

Export citation

Search in Google Scholar

Characterization of Arils Juice and Peel Decoction of Fifteen Varieties of Punica granatum L.: A Focus on Anthocyanins, Ellagitannins and Polysaccharides

This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

Full text: Download

Green circle
Preprint: archiving allowed
Green circle
Postprint: archiving allowed
Green circle
Published version: archiving allowed
Data provided by SHERPA/RoMEO

Abstract

Pomegranate is receiving renewed commercial and scientific interest, therefore a deeper knowledge of the chemical composition of the fruits of less studied varieties is required. In this work, juices from arils and decoctions from mesocarp plus exocarp were prepared from fifteen varieties. Samples were submitted to High Performance Liquid Chromatography—Diode Array Detector–Mass Spectrometry, spectrophotometric and colorimetric CIEL*a*b* analyses. Antioxidant, antiradical and metal chelating properties, inhibitory activity against tyrosinase and α-amylase enzymes were also evaluated. All varieties presented the same main phenols; anthocyanins and ellagitannins were widely variable among varieties, with the richest anthocyanin content in the juices from the Wonderful and Soft Seed Maule varieties (approx. 660 mg/L) and the highest ellagitannin content in the peel of the Black variety (approx. 133 mg/g dry matter). A good correlation was shown between the colour hue and the delphinidin/cyanidin ratio in juices (R2 = 0.885). Total polysaccharide yield ranged from 3% to 12% of the peels’ dry weight, with the highest content in the Black variety. Decoctions (24.44–118.50 mg KAE/g) showed better in vitro antioxidant properties and higher inhibitory capacity against tyrosinase than juices (not active-16.56 mg KAE/g); the inhibitory capacity against α-amylase was similar and quite potent for juices and decoctions. Knowledge about the chemical composition of different pomegranate varieties will allow for a more aware use of the different parts of the fruit.