Analysis of Free Sugars, Organic Acids, and Fatty Acids of Wood Apple (Limonia acidissima L.) Fruit Pulp

Abstract

Wood apple (Limonia acidissima L.) is an underutilized, fruit-yielding tree that is native to India and Sri Lanka. Wood apple trees are also cultivated in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Kampuchea, Laos, and Indonesia for delicious fruits and medicinal purposes. The major objective of the present work was the analysis of the nutritional status of wood apple fruit pulp.The fruits are rich in total carbohydrates (24.74 ± 0.19%), total proteins (9.30 ± 0.16%), oil (0.99 ± 0.01%), fiber (3.32 ± 0.02%), and ash (2.73 ± 0.12%). Further analysis and quantification of free sugars, organic acids, and fatty acid methyl esters were carried out by using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and gas chromatographic (GC) methods. In total, five sugars and nine organic acids were detected and quantified. The predominant sugars were fructose (16.40 ± 0.23%) and glucose (14.23 ± 0.10%), whereas the predominant organic acids were D-tartaric (4.01 ± 0.03%), ascorbic (4.51 ± 0.05%), and citric acid (4.27 ± 0.04%). The oil content of fruit pulp was 0.99 ± 0.01% and GC-MS analysis revealed that, it comprise of 16 fatty acid methyl esters. The percentage of saturated fatty acids were 32.17 ± 0.35%, that includes palmitic (18.52 ± 0.12%) and stearic acids (9.02 ± 0.08%), whereas, the unsaturated fatty acids were 51.98 ± 0.94%, including oleic acid (23.89 ± 0.06%), α-linolenic acid (16.55 ± 0.26%), linoleic acid (10.02 ± 0.43%), and vaccenic acid (1.78 ± 0.23%).

Analysis of Fatty Acids, Amino Acids and Volatile Profile of Apple By-Products by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry

“…The same trend was observed between JP and GP, highlighting once again the strong relationship between linoleic acid, esters, and aldehydes. The results are explained by the fact that unsaturated fatty acids play a paramount role in aroma apple development, as described by a large body of literature [ 34 , 41 , 48 ].…”

“…Recently, Lamani et al [ 34 ] showed that wood apples ( Limonia acidissima L.) collected from India contained 51.98 ± 0.94% unsaturated fatty acids from which the most abundant were oleic acid (23.89 ± 0.06%), α-linolenic, and linoleic acid with percentages of 16.55 ± 0.26% and 10.02 ± 0.43%, respectively.…”

“…Oleic and linoleic acids emphasized a strong relationship with aroma production [ 41 ]. It was stated that the unsaturated fatty acids are directly correlated to the storage and release of aroma components, acting as flavor precursors [ 34 ].…”

“…Analytical techniques such as HPLC (high-performance liquid chromatography), HS-SPME (headspace solid-phase microextraction) coupled with GC-MS (gas chromatography-mass spectrometry), GC-MS, and HS–SPME/GC–qMS (headspace–solid-phase microextraction gas chromatography combined with quadrupole mass spectrometry) were used by a large body of literature for the identification and quantification of amino acids and aroma volatile compounds, respectively [ 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 ]. Fatty acids were identified and quantified through GC-MS or GC-FID (gas chromatography coupled with flame ionization detector) according to [ 16 , 34 , 35 ].…”

Diversity in tree and fruit traits of wood apple (Limonia acidissima L.) genetic resources collected from south India

“…Similarly, cluster 2 is characterized by large-sized trees and fruits with an average stem girth of 2.62 m, canopy area of 35.10 m 3 , fruit circumference of 29.02 cm, fruit weight of 233.43 g, pulp weight of 151.53 g, and also with medium seed weight and a number of seeds with an average value of 9.99 g and 315 seeds respectively. Hence populations of cluster 2 could utilize the quality of fruits that have economic importance because of the presence of good nutritional qualities (Lamani et al 2022). The populations grouped under these two clusters are showing advantageous traits when compared with clusters 3 and 4 which are characterized by medium and small-sized trees and fruits.…”