Analysis of biochemical composition and antioxidant properties of nuts sold in the consumer marke

Abstract

The results of studies of the biochemical composition and antioxidant properties of nuts sold in the consumer market of St. Petersburg were presented in the work. The objects of research were kernels of nuts: sweet almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, walnuts. Total Soxhlet lipids, fatty acid composition, vitamin E, fractional composition of tocopherols and phytosterols, total phenolic compounds and flavonoids, antioxidant activity by FRAP with ferric chloride, o-phenanthroline and Triton X 100 were determined in nuts. Nuts varied in lipid content (42.6–65.4%) with a predominance of unsaturated fatty acids from 80.4 to 92.4 relative%. Oleic acid prevailed in the fatty acids of almonds, hazelnuts and cashews, while linoleic acid prevailed in walnuts. Walnuts contained the highest amount of polyunsaturated fatty acids. The antioxidant properties of nuts were formed by a complex of water and fat-soluble antioxidants. Fat-soluble antioxidants included vitamin E with a predominance of ?-tocopherol in the kernels of sweet almonds and hazelnuts, ?-tocopherol - in walnuts and cashews. Only sweet almond kernels contained all the tocopherol fractions. ?- and ?-tocopherols were absent in hazelnut lipids, while ?-tocopherols were absent in cashews and walnuts. ?-sitosterol, campesterol and stigmasterol with a predominance of ?-sitosterol were identified in the composition of phytosterols in all nut kernels. Water-soluble antioxidants are mainly represented by phenolic compounds, the amount of which varies widely depending on the type of nuts: cashews