WildArbutus unedoL. andRubus ulmifoliusSchott fruits are underutilized sources of valuable bioactive compounds with antioxidant capacity

Abstract

Wild Arbutus unedo L. and Rubus ulmifolius Schott fruits are underutilized sources of valuable bioactive compounds with antioxidant capacity.Abstract -Introduction. Several studies reveal the important role played by 'lesser-known' wild fruits since they contain nutritional and functional compounds which have biological properties. Materials and methods. Our work studied the presence of bioactive compounds such as vitamin C (ascorbic acid and dehydroascorbic acid), total phenolic content, phenolic acids, flavonols, anthocyanins and the antioxidant capacity (FRAP, ABTS •+ and DPPH• in vitro tests) in wild fruits of Arbutus unedo L. and Rubus ulmifolius Schott of Spanish origin, including samples from different seasons and locations. Results and discussion. A wide variability was found in the composition of fruits of the same species, which substantiates the importance of analyzing several batches of wild fruits, to achieve representative results, taking into account the natural variability. Arbustus unedo fruits showed higher vitamin C, mainly in the ascorbic acid form, and phenolic content than R. ulmifolius [(172-419) mg ascorbic acid⋅100 g -1 fw vs. (5.99-26.83) mg ascorbic acid⋅100 g -1 fw, and (773-1621) mg total phenolic compounds⋅100 g -1 fw vs. (376-1326) mg total phenolic compounds⋅100 g -1 fw, respectively]; phenolic acids and anthocyanins are the major groups of phenolic compounds found in both species, with gallic acid and cyanidin 3-glucoside as the main compounds. Arbustus unedo fruits showed significantly higher Folin-Ciocalteu values than those of R. ulmifolius. These values are higher than those reported for the majority of berries. The significant correlations found among different antioxidant compounds (r > 0.6300, P < 0.001) may reveal a protective effect between ascorbic acid and phenolic acids or anthocyanins in the fruits. Therefore, Arbutus unedo and R. ulmifolius fruits should be considered as new important sources of safe antioxidants. Espagne / Arbutus unedo / Rubus ulmifolius / fruits / composés phénoliques / teneur en phénols / antioxidant

Rubus ulmifolius Schott fruits: A detailed study of its nutritional, chemical and bioactive properties

“…Besides ellagic acid derivatives, moderate quantities of caffeic acid derivatives (peak 1 and 2) and non-anthocyanin flavonoid glycosides (peaks 3, 4, 5, 9, 10 and 11) were also found in R. ulmifolius fruit extracts, accounting to 10 and 20%, respectively of the phenolic compounds composition. The phenolic compounds of R. ulmifoius fruits has been previously described by Ruiz-Rodríguez et al (2014) in a sample from Spain, nevertheless, the phenolic profile shown by these authors is completely different from the one obtained herein.…”

“…Several studies have been performed using different Rubus species, such as Rubus ideaus, Rubus takesimensis and Rubus suavissimis (Milivojevic et al, 2011;Uhler & Yang, 2018;Yang, Pak, & Kim, 2018). Deeper studies were carried out in blackberry (Van de Velde, Pirovani, & Drago, 2018), in Rubus ulmifolium flowers buds and open flowers (Barros et al, 2010), and in Rubus ulmifolium fruits (Ruiz-Rodríguez et al, 2014). The present study evidences novelty in the chemical and bioactive characterization of R. ulmifolium fruits, and deepens the evaluation of compounds with bioactive interest, such as polyphenols.…”

“…The main phenolic compounds found in R. ulmifolius fruits were anthocyanins (23.8 ± 0.1 mg/g extract), representing about 35% of the total phenolic compounds quantified, comprising different cyanidin glycosides and one pelargonidin glycoside, with the higher amounts being found for cyanidin-3-O-glucoside (14.7 mg/g extract). This compound has been previous reported as the main anthocyanin compound in fruits of the same species (Ruiz-Rodríguez et al, 2014). Thus, none of the remainig anthocyanin compounds have been descrided, which could be explain for different location of the fruit origin.…”

“…Thus, actually, there is a growing interest in wild edible species that represent a source of several health-promoting compounds providing a potential strategy to diversify and enrich the daily diet and thus a contribution to combat global health disorders (Morales et al, 2013). Since wild species do not require specific conditions and action for their generation, it becomes an inexhaustible resource and therefore an added value for the food sector (Bacchetta et al, 2016;Emilia & Accame, 2016;Pinela, Carvalho, & Ferreira, 2017;Ruiz-Rodríguez et al, 2014).…”

“…Their therapeutic properties are assigned to the high concentration of biologically active compounds such as phenolic compounds, ellagitannins and ascorbic acid (Barros, Oliveira, Carvalho, & Ferreira, 2010;Oszmiański et al, 2015). Thus, an interdisciplinary approach should be applied for the valorization of wild species, deliberating and encourage about new projects linked to an ecologically sustainable extraction of bioactive compounds, and therefore to future applications in industry (Emilia & Accame, 2016;Ruiz-Rodríguez et al, 2014). Several studies have been performed using different Rubus species, such as Rubus ideaus, Rubus takesimensis and Rubus suavissimis (Milivojevic et al, 2011;Uhler & Yang, 2018;Yang, Pak, & Kim, 2018).…”