Atividade antioxidante de frutos cítricos cultivados no Paraná

Abstract

The citrus industry is one sector that stands out in the world fruit production, which makes citrus the most produced fruits in the world. The cultivation of citrus was introduced in Brazil in the colonial period, and since then it has a great importance in the consumption habits of our population. Citrus, mainly oranges and tangerines, are part of the Brazilian diet. In addition of being an important source of vitamins and fiber, fruits and citrus juices recently have been known to contain secondary metabolites including antioxidants such as ascorbic acid, phenolic compounds, flavonoids and limonoids, that are important for human nutrition. The objective of this study was to determine the antioxidant activity and the content of antioxidant compounds of four varieties of citrus (“Folha-Murcha” orange, “Pêra” orange, “Rosa” lemon and “Taiti” lemon) produced in Maringá, state of Paraná. It was analyzed the degree of acidity, soluble solids, vitamin C, carotenoids, chlorophyll, phenolic compounds and the antioxidant properties of the juice of the citrus fruits. There was significant difference for all the parameters analyzed. The varieties of oranges “Pêra” and “Folha-Murcha” showed higher amounts of vitamin C than the varieties of lemons studied. The antioxidant capacity assessed by the DPPH method was greater in orange “Folha-Murcha”, as well as vitamin C and phenolic compounds.