Liquid-state NMR spectroscopy was used to follow the compositional changes in mango juice during ripening, whereas MAS and HR-MAS techniques enabled resolved (13)C and (1)H NMR spectra of mango pulps to be recorded. Spectral assignment enabled the identification of several organic acids, amino acids, and other minor components, and the compositional changes upon ripening were followed through the changes in the spectra. In pulps, sucrose was found to predominate over fructose and glucose at most ripening stages, and citric acid content decreased markedly after the initial ripening stages while alanine increased significantly. Other spectral changes reflect the complex biochemistry of mango ripening and enabled the role played by some compounds to be discussed. Some differences observed between the composition of juices and pulps are discussed. This work shows that NMR spectroscopy enables the direct characterization of intact mango pulps, thus allowing the noninvasive study of the overall biochemistry in the whole fruit.
The use of high-resolution NMR and high-resolution diffusion-ordered spectroscopy (DOSY) for the characterization of selected Port wine samples of different ages with the aim of identifying changes in composition is described. Conventional 1D and 2D NMR methods enabled the identification of about 35 compounds, including minor components such as some medium-chain alcohols, amino acids, and organic acids. High-resolution (HR) DOSY extended sample characterization, increasing the number of compounds identified and NMR assignments made, by providing information on the relative molecular sizes of the metabolites present. Port wines of different ages were found to differ mainly in their content of (a) organic acids and some amino acids, (b) an unidentified possible disaccharide, and (c) large aromatic species. The relative amount of these last high Mw aromatics is seen to decrease significantly in the oldest wine, as expected from the known formation and precipitation of anthocyanin-based polymers during red wine aging.
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