Intensidade de pigmentação vermelha em maçãs e sua relação com os teores de compostos fenólicos e capacidade antioxidativa

Abstract

Phenolic compounds influence the quality of apples and their products in appearance, flavor, and nutritional properties. The aim of this work was to quantify the phenolic compounds, anthocyanins, flavonols, and antioxidant activity in Gala apples and of two somatic mutations, Royal Gala and Galaxy Gala, with different intensities of red pigmentation. The total phenolic content was similar in these fruits. The antioxidant activity presented significant difference in the whole fruits. gala variety presented the highest value (17559 µm.g-1) while Galaxy Gala, with low pigmentation, presented the lowest value (6160 µm.g-1). The anthocyanins content in the whole fruit varied from 5.79 to 13.73 mg.100 g-1 and the flavonols content from 23.37 to 382.83 mg.100 g-1 in Royal Gala and Galaxy Gala, respectively. The phenolic compounds presented the highest concentration in the epicarp, around 57% of the total content, and 42% of the antioxidant activity. The phenolic compounds and the antioxidant activity in the apple juices were significantly reduced with the enzymatic browning, with losses of 69% and 83% respectively. The fruits from the same variety with high and low color intensity showed similar values of phenolic compounds content and antioxidant capacity. However, the cultivars varied significantly.