Abstract
In this study, we conducted an analysis of the qualitative and quantitative composition of anthocyanins and anthocyanidins in different cultivars and genetic clones of American cranberries grown in Lithuanian climatic conditions. Four anthocyanin compounds predominated in fruit samples of American cranberry cultivars: cyanidin-3-galactoside, cyanidin-3-arabinoside, peonidin-3-galactoside, and peonidin-3-arabinoside. They accounted for 91.66 ± 2.79% of the total amount of the identified anthocyanins. The total anthocyanin content detected via the pH differential method was found to be by about 1.6 times lower than that detected via the UPLC method. Hierarchical cluster analysis and principal component analysis showed that the ‘Woolman’ cultivar distinguished from other cranberry cultivars in that its samples contained two times the average total amount of anthocyanins (8.13 ± 0.09 mg/g). The group of American cranberry cultivars ‘Howes’, ‘Le Munyon’, and ‘BL-8’ was found to have higher than average levels of anthocyanidin galactosides (means 3.536 ± 0.05 mg/g), anthocyanidins (means 0.319 ± 0.01 mg/g), and total anthocyanins (means 6.549 ± 0.09 mg/g). The evaluation of the antioxidant effect of cranberry fruit sample extracts showed that the greatest radical scavenging activity of the cranberry fruit extracts was determined in the fruit samples of ‘Woolman’ (849.75 ± 10.88 µmol TE/g) and the greatest reducing activity was determined in ‘Le Munyon’ (528.05 ± 12.16 µmol TE/g). The study showed a correlation between the total anthocyanin content and the antiradical and reductive activity of the extracts in vitro (respectively, R = 0.635 and R = 0.507, p < 0.05).
Highlights
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutralThe American cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon Aiton) is a perennial evergreen plant of the Ericaceae A.L. de Jussie family growing in natural habitats in North America [1,2,3].The selection of cranberry cultivars began in the U.S in the early 1800s, in studies with cranberry plants growing in natural cenopopulations [4]
During the land reclamation works in Lithuania, those raised bogs and intermediate-type wetlands were drained, which decreased the areas of small cranberry habitats [7]
The highest content of the anthocyanidin malvidin (0.107 ± 0.01 mg/g) was found in fruit samples of the ‘Howes’ cultivar, and the lowest (0.012 ± 0.00 mg/g) in fruit samples of the ‘Crowley’ cultivar (p < 0.05). These results suggest that genotypes have characteristic variation in the amounts of individual anthocyanins and anthocyanidins
Summary
The American cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon Aiton) is a perennial evergreen plant of the Ericaceae A.L. de Jussie family growing in natural habitats in North America [1,2,3]. The selection of cranberry cultivars began in the U.S in the early 1800s, in studies with cranberry plants growing in natural cenopopulations [4]. In the climatic conditions of Lithuania, small cranberries (Vaccinium oxycoccos L.) grow in the natural cenopopulations of raised bogs and intermediate-type wetlands [7]. During the land reclamation works in Lithuania, those raised bogs and intermediate-type wetlands were drained, which decreased the areas of small cranberry habitats [7]. In about 1967, the selection and introduction of the first cultivars of American cranberries as a perennial berry culture began in Lithuania [8]. The cultivation of the introduced cranberry cultivars in Lithuania has gained popularity [7]
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