Absorption of cyanidin-based anthocyanins is not fully understood with respect to dose or anthocyanin structure. In feeding studies using whole foods, nonacylated anthocyanins are more bioavailable than their acylated counterparts, but the extent to which plant matrix determines relative bioavailability of anthocyanins is unknown. Using juice of purple carrots to circumvent matrix effects, a feeding trial was conducted to determine relative bioavailability of acylated and nonacylated anthocyanins and to assess dose-response effects. Appearance of anthocyanins in plasma was measured in 10 healthy adults for 8 h following consumption of purple carrot juice. Each subject consumed 50, 150, and 250 mL of juice containing 76 micromol (65 mg), 228 micromol (194 mg), and 380 micromol (323 mg) of total anthocyanins, respectively. Acylated anthocyanins comprised 76% of total anthocyanins in the juice, yet their bioavailability was found to be significantly less than that of nonacylated anthocyanins. Peak plasma concentrations of nonacylated anthocyanins were 4-fold higher than that for acylated anthocyanins. Absorption efficiency declined across the doses administered. Because the treatments were consumed as juice, it could be discerned that the difference in bioavailability of acylated versus nonacylated anthocyanins was not primarily caused by interactions with the plant matrix.
Conjugated triene oxidation products of the sesquiterpene α-farnesene
are thought to induce
development of the storage disorder superficial scald. A
C18-HPLC method was devised which allows
simultaneous quantification of α-farnesene and its major oxidation
product, a conjugated trienol,
in hexane extracts of apple peel using UV detection at 232 and 269 nm.
Identification of the
compounds was confirmed by UV spectrometry, HPLC with diode array
detection, and GC−MS.
Apples of high (Granny Smith, GS), moderate (Red Delicious, RD),
and low (Gala) susceptibility to
scald were stored for up to 6 months at 0 °C under 1.5, 3, or 100%
oxygen or in air. Peel samples
were analyzed for α-farnesene and conjugated trienol content, which
correlated well with scald
susceptibility and occurrence. Levels of both sesquiterpenoids
were ≥20-fold higher in GS than in
Gala. Storage under low (1.5 or 3%) oxygen decreased farnesene
and trienol levels in each cultivar.
Two lots of RD fruit harvested 1 week apart differed markedly in
farnesene and trienol production;
fruit from the earlier harvest had higher levels of both and developed
scald, whereas fruit from the
later harvest did not scald. These results support the proposal
that scald susceptibility of apple
cultivars is a function of farnesene production and its oxidation to
conjugated trienols.
Keywords: α-Farnesene; conjugated triene; C18-HPLC; apple;
storage; scald
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