Chemical Composition, Functional Constituents, and Antioxidant Activities of Berry Fruits Produced in Korea

Abstract

Berry fruits are rich in phytochemicals, including polyphenols, anthocyanins, phenolic acids, and organic acids, which are known to have beneficial effects on health. The aim of this study was to investigate chemical composition, functional constituents, and antioxidant activities of mulberry, black raspberry, raspberry, and blueberry cultivated in Korea. Acidity of the four berries ranged from 0.26% to 1.10%, and pH ranged from 3.3 to 5.2. Total mineral contents of the four berries ranged from 92.9 to 256.0 mg/100 g. Among the berries, mulberry contained the most abundant total free sugars, and glucose and fructose were the major sugars in the berries. Mulberry contained more than three times as much γ-aminobutyric acid as the content of the other berries. Blueberry contained more free phenolic acid than the other berries. Especially, chlorogenic acids were the major free phenolic acids in blueberry. Black raspberry had the highest amount of polyphenols, anthocyanins, and flavonoids among the berries and showed the highest antioxidant activity.

Phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity of berries produced in South Korea

“…The content of total quercetins (rutin and isoquercetin) was the highest in mulberry, whereas that in strawberry was not detectable. These results agreed with those reported by Lee et al [12], who determined that the quercetin content of raspberry was the lowest among four berries (black raspberry, mulberry, blueberry, and raspberry). On the other hand, they revealed that quercetins were more abundant in black raspberry than in mulberry and blueberry, which was inconsistent with our result [12].…”

“…CGA constituted the largest content of PAs in the berries. Among the berries, aronia (253.4 mg/kg FW) contained the highest CGA content, followed by blueberry (214.0) and mulberry (36.0), whereas the lowest levels were found in the berries of Rubus species, which corroborated with the results of Lee et al [12] indicating that CGA was not detected in black raspberries. As an inhibitor of glucose-6-phosphatase, CGA reduces the rate of the hepatic release of glucose, resulting in decline in blood glucose levels [21].…”

“…Lee at al. [12] reported that the total phenolics (547.2) and anthocyanin (385.6) contents of black raspberry were higher than those of mulberry (331.6 and 118.9), blueberry (298.2 and 165.0), and raspberry (198.2 and 19.8).…”

“…Prior et al [9] investigated the contents of total phenolics and anthocyanins and determined the antioxidant activity of some Vaccinium species. Some studies determined the phenolic compounds in aronia, blueberry, black raspberry, mulberry, and raspberry and revealed that phenolic compounds positively correlate with antioxidant activity [10][11][12]. However, studies that simultaneously investigate the phenolics content and antioxidant activity of small berries produced in Korea are limited.…”

Evaluation of the Biological Activities of Berries as an Inner Beauty Ingredient

“…체리는 다량의 페놀화합물과 안토시아닌을 함유하고 있어 항산화, 항염 증 효과 (Mulabagal et aI., 2009), 신경세포 보호 효과 (Kim et al, 2005), 항균 활성 (Ahn et al, 2009) 등이 보고되었다. 오디(Morus alba L; mulberry fruit)는 뽕나무과(Moraceae) 에 속하는 뽕나무 열매로 국내에서 재배된 대표적인 베리류 과실 중 하나이다 (Lee et al, 2015). 오디의 cyaniding-3-O-b-Dglucopyranoside(C3G) 성분이 마우스의 뇌경색을 억제하고, 기억 력 향상에 도움을 주는 것으로 보고된 바 있다 (Kang et al, 2006;Kaewkaen et al, 2012).…”