| Affiliation: | (1) Universidade do Vale do Itajaí, Rua Uruguai 458, 88302 202 Itajaí, Santa Catarina, Brazil;(2) Grupo de Química y Bioquímica de Pigmentos, Departamento de Biotecnología de Alimentos, Instituto de la Grasa (CSIC), Avenida Padre García Tejero 4, 41012 Sevilla, Spain |
| Abstract: | Carotenoid composition has been investigated in acerola fruits (Malpighia emarginata DC. syn. Malpighia glabra L.) and derived products. In the ripe fruit, four major carotenoids were identified ( -carotene, -cryptoxanthin, lutein, and violaxanthin) together with other minor carotenoids (neoxanthin, antheraxanthin, neochrome, luteoxanthin, auroxanthin, -cryptoxanthin-5,6-epoxide, -cryptoxanthin-5,8-epoxide, cis--carotene, and cis-lutein). An average composition for the ripe fruit has been estimated as follows: -carotene (536.55  g/100 g fw), -cryptoxanthin (417.46 g/100 g fw), lutein (99.21 g/100 g fw), violaxanthin (395.33 g/100 g fw), and total minor carotenoids (197.33 g/100 g fw). Vitamin A values are similar to those described in tomatoes and some tropical fruits such as guava and papaya. After juice-making, including a pasteurization stage as thermal processing, decreases in carotenoid content were observed as well as progress of cis-isomers and structural rearrangement of xanthophylls containing 5,6 epoxide groups. The occurrence of such modifications affected the nutritional value of fruits as well as their antioxidant capability, properties that could be used as a measurement of processing quality. |
