Polyphenol Levels and Free Radical Scavenging Activities of Four Apple Cultivars from Integrated and Organic Farming in Different Italian Areas

• Published in: Journal of agricultural and food chemistry Vol. 56; no. 15; pp. 6536 - 6546
• Main Authors: Lamperi, Lavinia, Chiuminatto, Ugo, Cincinelli, Alessandra, Galvan, Paola, Giordani, Edgardo, Lepri, Luciano, Del Bubba, Massimo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Chemical Society 13.08.2008
• Subjects: Agriculture - methods; antioxidant activity; Apple; apples; ascorbic acid; Ascorbic Acid - analysis; Biological and medical sciences; Chemical Composition of Foods/Feeds; cultivars; DPPH; flavonoids; Flavonoids - analysis; Food industries; Food, Organic - analysis; free radical scavengers; Free Radical Scavengers - analysis; Free Radical Scavengers - chemistry; free radical scavenging activity; Fruit - chemistry; Fruit and vegetable industries; fruit composition; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; genetic variation; geographical variation; HPLC; integrated; integrated agricultural systems; Italy; Malus - chemistry; Malus domestica; organic; organic production; peels; Phenols - analysis; Polyphenols; Species Specificity; Italy; polyphenols; Apple; DPPH; flavonoids; HPLC; organic; free radical scavenging activity; integrated; Fruit; HPLC chromatography; Flavonoid; Free radical; Polyphenol; Area; Cultivar; Farming
• ISSN: 0021-8561; 1520-5118
• DOI: 10.1021/jf801378m

This paper investigates the influence of cultivar (Annurca, Golden Delicious, Red Chief, and Stayman Neepling), rural practice (integrated and organic), and growing region (different Italian regions) on polyphenol composition and antiradical activity of the pulp and skin of apples, as presented to the consumer at the market. Antiradical activity of fruit was strongly related with the total polyphenolic content, determined both by the spectrophotometric Folin−Ciocalteu method (R 2 = 0.90; P < 0.01) and by HPLC (R 2 = 0.85; P < 0.01). Considering the edible portion of the fruit, polyphenolics contribute toward explaining approximately 90% of the overall antiradical activity, thus highlighting their important role in human health protection. Therefore, the data indirectly indicated that ascorbic acid and other antiradical molecules differing from polyphenols play a much less important role in explaining the health-protecting properties of apples. Cultivar effect was by far the most important, and Annurca and Golden Delicious were respectively the best and the worst apples from the point of view of the health-protecting attributes.