Vol. 123 (2010): Proceedings of the Florida State Horticultural Society
Handling & Processing

Anthocyanin Identification, Vitamin C Content, and Antioxidant Capacity of Acerola (Malpighia emarginata DC) Juices

Photos: Florida contains over half the wild orchid species found in the United States, at roughly 100 species. The endangered Ghost Orchid (Dendrophylax lindenii) makes its home in the area of southern Florida known as the Big Cypress Swamp (including the

Published 2010-12-01

Keywords

  • single-strength juice,
  • HPLC,
  • ORAC,
  • DPPH

Abstract

The main objectives of this study were to identify and quantify anthocyanin content in acerola juices and to determine the antioxidant capacity of the juices. Anthocyanin content was analyzed by a high-performance liquid chromatograph connected to a diode array and mass spectrometry detectors (HPLC–DAD–MS/MS). The antioxidant capacity was determined by the 2,2´-diphenyl picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) and the oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assays. The ascorbic acid content was determined by HPLC. The frozen single-strength acerola juice presented 53.60 mg total anthocyanin for 100 mL with predominance of cyanidin 3-rhamnoside as individual anthocyanin. The frozen single-strength juice showed 306.77 and 85.29 mmole Trolox equivalent for 100 mL juice respectively for DPPH and ORAC antioxidant values. The ascorbic acid (vitamin C) content was found to be 4440 mg for 100 mL single-strength juice. Anthocyanin and ascorbic acid seemed to be the major contributors of the antioxidant capacity of the juice. Overall, this study shows that acerola juice is good source of anthocyanin pigment, an outstanding source of ascorbic acid and a potential good source of antioxidant.