Abstract
The nut plays a major role in human nutrition, as a nutritive food rich in phenolic compounds and natural antioxidants. These compounds have the ability to reduce the incidence of chronic diseases. This study evaluates the content in phenolic compounds and the antioxidant activity in pecan meat and shell, examining the two varieties Western and Wichita, cultivated in the region of Delicias of the state of Chihuahua (Mexico). The high concentrations of phenolic compounds (170.36 mg g-1) and tannins (582.07 mg g-1) found in the shell were 7- to 8-fold higher than in the meat. The results for the variety Wichita were significantly higher than for Western. The antioxidant activity was assessed by the DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-1,2-picrylhydrazyl), which correlated strongly with the phenolic compounds (r2=0.99). Three phenolic compounds were identified and quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) in the meat and the shell, i.e. gallic acid, ellagic acid, and catechin, while only ellagic acid was not identified in the shell of the variety Western. Pecans are rich in phytochemical compounds that provide high antioxidant activity to the meat and the shell. These phytochemical compounds are beneficial for human health. The high concentration of phytochemicals in the shells represent a good source of antioxidants for future applications in the pharmaceutical and agro-food industry.
Highlights
The consumption of nuts has increased due to growing interest in a healthy lifestyle, given that several studies suggest a connection between the frequent consumption of nuts and a lower incidence of heart disease, obesity, and type-II diabetes (Luna-Guevara et al, 2010)
In addition to being rich in proteins, vitamin E, unsaturated fatty acids and fibers, nuts are an important source of numerous phytochemicals, including phenolic compounds with natural antioxidant capacity (Kornsteiner et al, 2009), which have attracted considerable attention in recent years due to their many health benefits, including anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties (Chen and Blumberg 2008)
The aim of the current study is to evaluate the phytochemical composition and antioxidant activity of the edible part and shell of the pecan varieties Western and Wichita, which are being grown in the southwest region of Delicias, Chihuahua, Mexico
Summary
The consumption of nuts has increased due to growing interest in a healthy lifestyle, given that several studies suggest a connection between the frequent consumption of nuts and a lower incidence of heart disease, obesity, and type-II diabetes (Luna-Guevara et al, 2010). Great interest has arisen in characterizing and quantifying phenolic compounds of the edible part, classified among the foods with high antioxidant capacity (John and Shahidi, 2010), and byproducts such shells rich in phenolic compounds and in flavonoids (e.g. proanthocyanidins) (Pinheiro do Prado et al, 2014). Some authors have recently demonstrated that the pecan shell has higher levels of phenols and tannins than in the edible part and that these phytochemical compounds are related to antioxidant properties (Trevisol et al, 2011). An important group of phenolic compounds are tannins, which are found in a condensed and hydrolyzed form These molecules are of notable nutritional and medicinal value due to their potent antioxidant capacity (Pinheiro do Prado et al, 2009). It is of great interest to characterize the natural phytochemical content and antioxidant capacity of the pecan
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