Comparative Analysis of Phenolic and Antioxidant Profiling of White Variety Guava Fruit (Cv Arka Mridula) Across the Ripening Stages, a Statistical Multi-Facet Study

Abstract

Anatomical (Scanning Electron Microscopy), phenolic (total phenol and total flavonoid), antioxidant (DPPH, FRAP, and ABTS) and analytical profiling (LC-MS and GC-MS) were performed for three different ripening stages (pre-ripe, ripe and over-ripe) of guava with the hydro-methanolic extraction technique. Overall, the antioxidant-phenolic parameters showed a sigmoid pattern of change during the maturation progress of the fruit at room temperature (28±2ºC). Further, the multivariate PCA (Principal Component Analysis) established a strong correlation among different phenolic-antioxidant variables studied in this work. Analytical characterization by GC and LC-MS identified 55 (fifty-five) compounds from the guava extract. The PCA revealed a few compounds, namely, Glycine, Gamma Sitosterol, Kaempferol-4'-glucoside, Thiamine, Catechin and n-Hexadecanoic acid, could contribute significantly to the ripening process of guava. Finally, it is expected that an in-depth metabolic study of the guava ripening life cycle performed here could lead to the future development of highly stable fruit varies, with extended post-harvest shelf life at room temperature.