Evaluation of noni (Morinda citrifolia) volatile profile by dynamic headspace and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry
Avaliação do perfil de voláteis em noni (Morinda citrifolia) por headspace dinâmico e cromatografia gasosa-espectrometria de massasAdriana
IntroductionNoni comes from the Rubiaceae family which contains approximately eighty species, twenty of which have economic or other benefits. Noni stands out among its other family members because of its diverse uses, and it is able to grow in distinctly different environments including sandy areas, fertile soils, and rocky terrains. Noni is found in most South Pacific islands, Malaysia, the West Indies, Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, India, Africa, and Guam (ELKINS, 2002).The noni plant has traditionally been used by Polynesians for medicinal purposes for more than 2000 years (McCLATCHEY, 2002). The presence of biological compounds has been reported, such as glycosides, polysaccharides, iridoids, alkaloids, lignans, trisaccharide fatty acid esters, anthraquinones, scopoletin, morindin, vitamins, and minerals (WANG et al., 2000;LIU et al., 2001;FURUSAWA et al., 2003;SU et al., 2005). Some in vitro and in vivo analysis demonstrate that noni can confer health benefits in the form of scavenging of free radicals, antimutagenicity, anticarcinoma activity, anticlastogenic activity, inhibition of lowdensity-lipoprotein oxidation, anti-inflammatory activity, blood purification, stimulation of the immune system, regulation of cell function, and regulation of cholesterols (SALUDES et al., 2002;FURUSAWA et al., 2003;HORNICK et al., 2003;KAMIYA et al., 2004). It is noteworthy that according to the Informe Técnico n o 25 (technical safety report #25) noni products commercialization as food should be not allowed in Brazil. This recommendation was based on the lack of scientific information regarding its safety as food (AGÊNCIA..., 2008).Volatile compounds are responsible for the characteristic flavor of foods. These compounds are from different chemical classes present in a wide concentration range and are thermal instable. Commonly, the volatile profile is composed by dozens of compounds, but only a few have an effective contribution to the characteristic food aroma and flavor. Despite its richness in functional compounds, the consumption of noni products could be impaired by their sensory properties. The flesh of the fruit is characteristically bitter, and when completely ripe it produces a very distinctive, somewhat offensive, odor and flavor (ELKINS, 2002). Only one study was found in literature on noni fruit volatile compounds. Farine et al. (1996) analyzed a solvent extract and reported 51 volatile compounds on noni collected in Moorea (French Polynesia). These authors found 25 acids, which corresponded to 83% of the total volatile compounds, mostly low molecular weight fatty acids which are widely known as possessing strong sweat, cheese, fat, and rancid odors.
ResumoO noni é um fruto que tem interessado à comunidade científica por sua atividade fun...
