Antioxidant Activities and Anthocyanin Content of Fresh Fruits of Common Fig (Ficus Carica L.)
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J. Agric. Food Chem. 2006, 54, 7717−7723 7717 Antioxidant Activities and Anthocyanin Content of Fresh Fruits of Common Fig (Ficus carica L.) ANAT SOLOMON,†,‡ SARA GOLUBOWICZ,† ZEEV YABLOWICZ,† SHLOMO GROSSMAN,§ MARGALIT BERGMAN,§ HUGO E. GOTTLIEB,# ⊥ ARIE ALTMAN,‡ ZOHAR KEREM,*, AND MOSHE A. FLAISHMAN† Department of Fruit Tree Sciences, Institute of Horticulture, ARO, The Volcani Center, P.O. Box 6, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel; Faculty of Life Sciences and Department of Chemistry, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel; and Institute of Plant Science and Genetics in Agriculture and Institute of Biochemistry, Food Science and Nutrition, The Faculty of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Quality Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot 76100, Israel Fig fruit has been a typical component in the health-promoting Mediterranean diet for millennia. To study the potential health-promoting constituents of fig fruits, six commercial fig varieties differing in color (black, red, yellow, and green) were analyzed for total polyphenols, total flavonoids, antioxidant capacity, and amount and profile of anthocyanins. Using reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RP- LC), various concentrations of anthocyanins but a similar profile was found in all varieties studied. Hydrolysis revealed cyanidin as the major aglycon. Proton and carbon NMR confirmed cyanidin-3- O-rhamnoglucoside (cyanidin-3-O-rutinoside; C3R) as the main anthocyanin in all fruits. Color appearance of fig extract correlated well with total polyphenols, flavonoids, anthocyanins, and antioxidant capacity. Extracts of darker varieties showed higher contents of phytochemicals compared to lighter colored varieties. Fruit skins contributed most of the above phytochemicals and antioxidant activity compared to the fruit pulp. Antioxidant capacity correlated well with the amounts of polyphenols and anthocyanins (R 2 ) 0.985 and 0.992, respectively). In the dark-colored Mission and the red Brown-Turkey varieties, the anthocyanin fraction contributed 36 and 28% of the total antioxidant capacity, respectively. C3R contributed 92% of the total antioxidant capacity of the anthocyanin fraction. Fruits of the Mission variety contained the highest levels of polyphenols, flavonoids, and anthocyanins and exhibited the highest antioxidant capacity. KEYWORDS: Common fig (Ficus carica L.); color; anthocyanins; flavonoids; polyphenols; antioxidant capacity; pulp; skin INTRODUCTION cholesterol free (2, 3). Fig fruits contain at least 17 types of Ficus carica L., a deciduous tree belonging to the Moraceae amino acids, among which aspartic acid and glutamine are the family, is one of the earliest cultivated fruit trees. Today, fig is highest ones (3). Dried figs also contain relatively high amounts an important crop worldwide for dry and fresh consumption. of crude fibers (5.8%, w/w), higher than those of all other On the basis of the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI) data, common fruits (2). More than 28% of the fiber is of the soluble published by the Food and Nutrition Board of the U.S. Institute type, which has been shown to aid in the control of blood sugar of Medicine (1), and the nutrient composition of dried figs (2), and blood cholesterol and in weight loss. Dried figs also contain they can be demonstrated to be a superior source of minerals one of the highest concentrations of polyphenols among the and vitamins, providing per 100 g serving the following: iron, commonly consumed fruits and beverages (2, 5). 30%; calcium, 15.8%; potassium, 14%; thiamin (B1) 7.1%; and Fig color varies from dark purple to green. Figs can be eaten riboflavin (B2) 6.2%. Figs are sodium free as well as fat and whole and raw, but are often peeled; the flesh is eaten and the skin discarded. Although fig is one of the most abundant fruits * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed (telephone 972- in the Mediterranean diet, there is no information in recent 8-9489278; fax 972-8-9476189; e-mail [email protected]). scientific literature regarding its health-promoting potential. In † ARO, The Volcani Center. ‡ Institute of Plant Science and Genetics in Agriculture, The Hebrew a single paper, figs of an unknown variety were randomly picked University of Jerusalem. at one time point and found to contain several carotenoids, § Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar-Ilan University. including lutein, cryptoxanthin, lycopene, â-carotene, and # Department of Chemistry, Bar-Ilan University. R ⊥ Institute of Biochemistry, Food Science and Nutrition, The Hebrew -carotene (4), with lycopene being the most abundant caro- University of Jerusalem. tenoid, followed by lutein and â-carotene. The Mediterranean 10.1021/jf060497h CCC: $33.50 © 2006 American Chemical Society Published on Web 09/07/2006 7718 J. Agric. Food Chem., Vol. 54, No. 20, 2006 Solomon et al. diet has been reported to promote health and quality of life in Table 2. Gradient Program for RP-HPLC Analysisa those who adhere to it, specifically by preventing pathophysi- ological conditions related to coronary heart disease and cancer time phosphate acetonitrile H3PO4 (5). The high consumption of natural antioxidants, achieved by (min) buffer (%) (ACN) (%) (%) consuming fresh salads, vegetables, fruits, and their derived 0982 products, is generally considered to be a major beneficial 5982 8928 contributor to the Mediterranean diet. Along with olive, fig (F. 10 76 11 13 carica L.) is a characteristic and abundant fruit in this diet. 24 68.5 11 20.5 Many studies show that daily consumption of fruits and 25 98 2 vegetables is associated with reduced risks for chronic degen- 30 98 2 erative diseases (6, 7). Fruits and vegetables contribute polyphe- nols as well as antioxidant vitamins to the diet. Some common a Linear gradient for elution of anthocyanins from fig fruit extracts monitored at fruits have high antioxidant capacities that cannot be accounted 520 nm. for by their vitamin C content (8). Eberhardt and others (9, 10) suggested that the major antioxidant activity in fruits and extractions were combined and evaporated in vacuum to dryness at 25 ° vegetables is due to the presence of polyphenol and flavonoid C. The residual pigment was resuspended in 2.0 mL of 0.1% (v/v) compounds. The antioxidant activity of several flavonoids, methanolic HCl. Samples were filtered through a 0.45 µm cellulose syringe and stored at -20 °C until analysis. measured as scavenging of peroxyl radicals, is higher than that Analysis of Fruit Skin Color. Fruit skin color was measured by a of vitamin E, vitamin C, or glutathione (11). colorimeter (Chroma Meter CR-301, Minolta Co., Osaka, Japan), Anthocyanins extracted from purple-black rice showed 10- standardized with calibration plate sets CR-A47 and white plate of the 25 times higher antioxidant capacity than the equivalent fruit. Color parameters were expressed as tristimulus colorimetric concentrations of Trolox used as a reference antioxidant (12). measurements, that is, L*, a*, b*, C, and H°. Negative L* indicates In another study, the six common anthocyanidin standards and darkness, and positive L* indicates lightness. Negative a* indicates their glycosides potently protected emulsified oil and human green color, and high positive a* indicates red color. High positive b* low-density lipoprotein (LDL) from oxidation, many showing indicates a more yellow color, and negative b* indicates blue color. ) 2 + 2 1/2 capacities comparable to that of R-tocopherol, Trolox, catechin, The chroma (C) value, calculated as C (a* b* ) , indicates color or quercetin (13). intensity or saturation. Hue angle, a parameter that has been shown to be effective in predicting visual color appearance, was calculated using Berries such as blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries the formula H° ) tan-1 (b*/a*), where 0° or 360° ) red-purple, 90° ) have high antioxidant capacities attributed to their high levels yellow, 180° ) green, and 270° ) blue (17). Color was measured at of polyphenols and anthocyanins (14, 15). Analyzing total three random positions. antioxidant activity in various dietary plants, Halvorson and co- Determination of Polyphenols. The total polyphenolic content was workers showed that Smyrna figs from Turkey (honey color) determined with Folin-Ciocalteu reagent accorrding to the method had lower total antioxidant capacity than pomegranate, grape, modified from Singleton (18) using gallic acid as a standard. Total fig or plum, but higher capacity than papaya, mango, apple, or phenolics extract was expressed on a fresh weight basis as milligrams banana (16). of gallic acid equivalence (GAE) per 100 g of fresh weight (FW) or tissue. Samples of each extraction were analyzed in triplicate. The present study was designed to characterize the nutritional Determination of Flavonoids. The total flavonoids content was value of six commercial fig varieties with different colors. determined colorimetrically as described previously by Kim and others Within this framework, we determined the anthocyanin profile at 510 nm (19). The flavonoid content was determined by a (+)-catechin and amounts in these varieties and measured their total standard curve and expressed as mean of milligrams of (+)-catechin polyphenolics, flavonoids, and antioxidant capacity as well as per 100 g of FW of fruit or tissue. Triplicate samples were analyzed their levels as a function of tissue of origin. for each sample. Determination of Anthocyanins. Total anthocyanins content was MATERIALS AND METHODS determined according to the pH differential method (19). Absorbance