Antioxidant Activity and Anthocyanin Contents in Olives (cv Cellina di Nardò) during Ripening and after Fermentation

Abstract

The olive tree “Cellina di Nardò” (CdN) is one of the most widespread cultivars in Southern Italy, mainly grown in the Provinces of Lecce, Taranto, and Brindisi over a total of about 60,000 hectares. Although this cultivar is mainly used for oil production, the drupes are also suitable and potentially marketable as table olives. When used for this purpose, olives are harvested after complete maturation, which gives to them a naturally black color due to anthocyanin accumulation. This survey reports for the first time on the total phenolic content (TPC), anthocyanin characterization, and antioxidant activity of CdN olive fruits during ripening and after fermentation. The antioxidant activity (AA) was determined using three different methods. Data showed that TPC increased during maturation, reaching values two times higher in completely ripened olives. Anthocyanins were found only in mature olives and the concentrations reached up to 5.3 g/kg dry weight. AA was determined for the four ripening stages, and was particularly high in the totally black olive fruit, in accordance with TPC and anthocyanin amounts. Moreover, the CdN olives showed a higher TPC and a greater AA compared to other black table olives produced by cultivars commonly grown for this purpose. These data demonstrate the great potential of black table CdN olives, a product that combines exceptional organoleptic properties with a remarkable antioxidant capacity.

Antioxidant Activity of Polyphenolic Plant Extracts

“…As mentioned hydroxytyrosol is present in high concentration in olive oil which also contains other potent polyphenolic antioxidants such as oleuropein, tyrosol, coumaric acid, caffeic acid, vanillic acid, ferulic acid, kaempferol, and quercetin [10]. Aprile et al [11] assessed for the first time the antioxidant activity and the total polyphenolic content of olive fruits from the olive tree "Cellina di Nardò" (CdN), one of the most widespread cultivars in Southern Italy. The results showed that the fully maturation is the best harvest time to obtain a table olive with a high content in polyhpenols [11].…”

“…Aprile et al [11] assessed for the first time the antioxidant activity and the total polyphenolic content of olive fruits from the olive tree "Cellina di Nardò" (CdN), one of the most widespread cultivars in Southern Italy. The results showed that the fully maturation is the best harvest time to obtain a table olive with a high content in polyhpenols [11]. It was also shown that different treatments that are necessary to remove the bitterness of the raw olive and to stabilize them to obtain edible table olives, cause a loss in phenolic substances which also results in a loss of antioxidant activity [11].…”

“…The results showed that the fully maturation is the best harvest time to obtain a table olive with a high content in polyhpenols [11]. It was also shown that different treatments that are necessary to remove the bitterness of the raw olive and to stabilize them to obtain edible table olives, cause a loss in phenolic substances which also results in a loss of antioxidant activity [11]. In addition, Martinez et al [12] examined if hydroxytyrosol extract from olive fruits could be used as preservative for fish patties.…”

An Artificial Intelligence Approach for Italian EVOO Origin Traceability through an Open Source IoT Spectrometer

“…The correlation between color and pigment content is well known in the literature [ 46 ]: the crushing of very green olives produces a typical green colored oil due to the high content in chlorophyll; if olives are more mature, carotenoids will prevail, determining a yellow-gold colored oil. Additionally, as the maturation progresses, the content and profile of phenolic compounds will also be affected: crushing green olives will result in an oil characterized by a higher content of phenolic acids, phenolic alcohols, oleuropein, and secoiridoids, whereas oils produced with dark brown olives will have a high content of anthocyanins, water-soluble plant pigments that take on different colors: red, blue, or violet [ 47 , 48 ].…”

Extraction of Anthocyanins and Total Phenolic Compounds from Açai (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) Using an Experimental Design Methodology. Part 1: Pressurized Liquid Extraction

“…This method could be applied, even in the case of non-volatile or thermolabile compounds. HPLC has been used to identify phenolic compounds and anthocyanins in grape skins [59], cornelian cherry fruit [60], Morus alba [61], olives [62], or açai [63].…”