Nutritional characterization of Vasconcellea quercifolia A.St-Hil.: potential for the development of functional food

Abstract

Vasconcellea quercifolia A.St-Hil. (Caricaceae), popularly known as papaya of the woods or jacaratiá, occurs from the south of Bahia to Rio Grande do Sul (RS) and is considered a Non-Conventional Food Plant (PANC) (Kinupp et al., 2011; Kinupp & Lorenzi, 2014), however, its nutritional characteristics are poorly known. On addition, it is included in the list of the Brazilian flora, considered part of its sociobiodiversity, with feeding value that justifies its marketing in natura or that of its derivatives (Brasil, 2016). Grated medullary parenchyma was used instead of coconut in the preparation of sweets in the past. However, its popular use had been gradually forgotten (Kinupp et al., 2011; Kinupp & Lorenzi, 2014) and was recently resumed with the broad dissemination of PANC's (Kinupp & Lorenzi, 2014) which describe the potentialities of this species (Kinupp & Lorenzi, 2014; Caetano et al., 2008). On light of that, the aim of the present study was to investigate the physical, chemical, and nutritional properties of V. quercifolia to encourage its use in the development of new food products. 2 Materials and methods 2.1 Sample collection Medullary parenchyma and green and ripe fruits were collected from three individuals located in the central region of Rio Grande do Sul (coordinates 29°23.426'; 29°19'49"; 29°19'82" S and 52°04'63"; 52°13'45"; 52°17'40" W) identified as Sample 1, Sample 2 and Sample 3, respectively. Fertile material

Nutritional potential of Vasconcellea quercifolia A. St.-Hil. green fruit flour

“…The flour of green fruit V. quercifolia had higher concentrations of chemical constituents when compared to the unripe fruit in nature evaluated by Folharini et al (2019), except for the humidity, which the flour has a reduction of 78% in relation to fresh fruits. This difference in composition is associated with the drying process of the fruits for the preparation of the flour, which leads to a higher concentration of its constituents due to the loss of water.…”

“…Additionally, Folharini et al (2019) evaluated green and ripe fruits of the species in physical-chemical terms and nutritional composition, concluding that green fruits had higher levels of protein and fiber, whereas ripe fruits had higher levels of ash and carbohydrates. However, more studies are required in order to discover their dietary importance, thus boosting production, marketing, and consumption beyond the regional scope.…”

GC-MS Based Metabolite Profiling to Monitor Ripening-Specific Metabolites in Pineapple (Ananas comosus)

“…Its level was known to be varied among the fruits. In banana and Vasconcellea quercifolia, the level of aspartic acid was found to be decreased along with the ripening progress, while mature or ripe tomato contained more aspartic acid that brings out the umami taste [49,51,52]. Other than the source of umami taste, the level of aspartic acid might also connect with the free auxin level in fruits that affect its ripening [53].…”

Functional food ingredients for control of gestational diabetes mellitus: a review

“…Functional foods have been defined as industrially processed or natural foods that, besides providing basic nutrition, beneficially promote optimal health and help reduce the risk of disease when consumed on a regular basis (Granato et al, 2020). Increasing number of non-conventional food plants show great potential to be novel functional foods (Folharini et al, 2019). Particularly, functional foods are often rich in bioactive compounds associated with prevention of metabolic disease (Konstantinidi & Koutelidakis, 2019).…”