Nutraceutical profiles of apricots (Prunus armeniaca L.) as a source of fruit quality traits for breeding

Helena Gómez-Martínez,Elena Zuriaga,Almudena Bermejo,María L Badenes

doi:10.5424/sjar/2021194-18331

Abstract

Aim of study: In a social context of increasing concern about healthy diets, the development of new varieties with enhanced content in nutraceutical compounds is an important objective of the fruit breeding programs currently developed. In this sense, apricot is a fruit crop very appreciated by consumers worldwide due to its organoleptic characteristics, but also plays an important role in human nutrition due to its content of phytocompounds as sugars, organic acids, vitamins and polyphenols. Area of study: The identification of sources of variation for these traits could be useful for apricot breeding worldwide. Material and methods: New selections from the apricot breeding program carried out at the Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Agrarias (IVIA, Spain) and traditional varieties have been analysed aimed at identifying sources of genetic variation for fruit quality. For this purpose, sugar content, organic acids and ascorbic acid were studied during three crop years. Main results: Results revealed sucrose and glucose as the major sugars, malic and citric acid as the main organic acids, and diverse ascorbic acid content among the cultivars studied. Research highlights: Some accessions point as potential sources to increase fruit quality. In addition, the study showed that apricot peel is an excellent source of nutraceutical compounds. Moreover, this study opens up new possibilities to study the genetic control of these traits in apricot in the future.

Highlights

The increasing demand for safe, healthy and nutritious food by consumers, turn the internal quality of the fruit into one of the main goals of the food industry
Fructose and glucose appear positively correlated between tissues and between years, while in peel fructose appeared negatively correlated with sucrose
The well-known cultivars from the Mediterranean Basin showed high sugar content and the accessions belonging to the IVIA’s breeding program showed an intermediate content between them and ‘Goldrich’

Summary

Introduction

The increasing demand for safe, healthy and nutritious food by consumers, turn the internal quality of the fruit into one of the main goals of the food industry In this sense, plants and some fruits become a useful source of compounds with a relevant role in improving health (Slavin & Lloyd, 2012; Vieira da Silva et al, 2016). Despite its wide geographical spread, each region usually grows locally adapted apricot cultivars because this species has very specific ecological requirements. In this sense, significant breeding efforts have been undertaken (Zhebentyayeva et al, 2012), leading to a rich diversity apricot germplasm in terms of fruit morphology, harvest season or biotic and abiotic stresses. Pomological and nutraceutical properties depend on varieties, cultivation systems, fruit storage conditions or developmental stages (Ruiz et al, 2005)

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