Biochemical Characterization of Some Varieties of Apricot Present in the Vesuvius Area, Southern Italy

Abstract

The witnesses of the millenary history of Campania felix in southern Italy highlighted that several fruit and vegetables cultivated in such territory could potentially be a treasure trove of important health elements. Our work evaluated the content of β-carotene, ascorbic acid, and total phenolics and the antioxidant activity of ten typical varieties of apricots cultivated in the Vesuvius area in the Campania region. The total polyphenols varied between 10.24 and 34.04 mg/100 g of a fresh sample. The amount of ascorbic acid also varied greatly, ranging from 2.65 to 10.65 mg/100 g of a fresh product. B-Carotene reached values up to 0.522 mg/100 g of the fresh sample. The correlation analysis performed, accounting for these parameters, showed that the antioxidant activity, calculated by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH assay) and azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) tests, was influenced mainly by the content of total polyphenols, with ρ = −0.762 and ρ = 0.875 when we considered DPPH and ABTS tests, respectively, slightly less by the content of ascorbic acid, and not by β-carotene. The dendrogram clustered eight varieties into two main groups; on the other hand, two varieties (“Vitillo” and “Preveta bella”) seemed hierarchically distant. The gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), herein performed for the first time, demonstrated the influence of the varieties on the VOC profiles, both from a qualitative and semiquantitative perspective, discriminating the varieties in different clusters, each of which was characterized by specific notes. α-Terpinolene was the only terpene identified by GC–MS that appeared to affect the antioxidant activity.

Research on the Process of Convective Drying of Apples and Apricots Using an Original Drying Installation

“…The dried product becomes less thermolabile ascorbic acid due to the large increase in drying agent temperature. Other studies found comparable results for drying apples [72][73][74].…”

“…The amount of thermolabile ascorbic acid in the dried product decreases as a result of the drying agent's temperature being significantly raised. Similar findings for drying apples, pears, peppers, etc., were found in other studies [70][71][72][73][74]. The Wojdyo et al study's [70] drying methods and parameters had a substantial impact on the red fresh apple's physical, chemical, and particularly bioactive qualities.…”

HS-SPME-GC/MS Metabolomic Analysis for the Comparative Evaluation between a Plum–Apricot Hybrid and Its Parents

“…The genus Prunus is widely known for its delicious fruits. The apricot fruit is characterized with not only a distinct flavor and odor but also a variety of health-enhancing compounds like phenolic compounds and carotenoids [2]. Worldwide, all cultivated apricots originate from only one species-the Prunus armeniaca L., and, according to authors, apricot varieties are categorized into four eco-geographical groups, namely Central Asia, Europe, Iran-Caucasus, and Dzhungar-Zailing [3].…”

Diversity in Morphometric, Pomological, and Fruit-Quality Traits of Apricot (Prunus armeniaca) Traditional Varieties: Implications for Landrace Differentiation at Regional Scale

“…For instance, it is generally believed that landraces are a source of trait variation for local adaptation and resilience to extreme climate conditions [8,9]. Landraces of fruit trees are also appreciated because they provide fruits with superior aroma and taste [10,11] and this is also related to the fruiting habit of the variety [12]. It is likely that this adaptive diversity is not largely considered in apricot breeding programs, currently carried out in a limited number of nations.…”