Abstract
Abstract This study aimed to chemically characterize the pulps of the tropical fruits araticum (Annona crassiflora), buriti (Mauritia flexuosa), coquinho azedo (Butia capitata), cagaita (Eugenia dysenterica), and cajá (Spondias mombin), with a focus on antioxidant potential and microminerals. Calcium levels in the Araticum pulp are 9.35 mg/100 g and the iron content was 4.78 mg/100 g. In cagaita pulp, the calcium content was 15.35 mg/100 g and magnesium content was 66.00 mg/100 g. The iron content present in coquinho pulp was 11.47 mg/100 g and in cagaita it was 11.53 mg/100 g. The extracts with the highest contents of total phenolic compounds were araticum (433.80 mg GAE/g) and coquinho (173.5 mg GAE/g). Araticum pulp had the highest antioxidant potential because it had the lowest EC50 (0.04 mg/mL). The results presented here demonstrate the great potential of the fruits of the Cerrado in terms of rich mineral nutrients and bioactive compounds.
Highlights
The Cerrado is an ecoregion with specific characteristics and great diversity
For the analysis of total phenolic compounds and total antioxidant activity, we obtained extracts of fruit pulp according to a method adapted from Rufino et al (2007)
The pulps of araticum, coquinho, and cagaita presented high phenolic contents when compared to other traditional fruit pulps such as tamarind (23.57 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g), caju (201.61 mg GAE/g), and goiaba (104.79 mg GAE/g) reported by Vieira et al (2011)
Summary
The richness of native fruit species and a large amount of edible fruit makes the Cerrado the most diversified tropical savanna in the world (Klink & Machado, 2005; Schiassi et al, 2018) The greatness of this savannah indicates the importance of studies aimed at the conservation and management of its biodiversity. Mineral nutrients play a vital role in the development and proper physiological function, and fruits are considered the main sources of minerals required in human diets Quantitatively they represent a small fraction of the total mineral content of the human body, microelements, and trace elements such as zinc, copper manganese, and iron play important roles in several metabolic pathways (Hardisson et al, 2001; Trindade, 2005). The present study was designed to chemically characterize the pulp of araticum, buriti, coquinho azedo, cagaita, and cajá with a focus on their antioxidant potential, their content of phenolic compounds, macronutrients, and minerals
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