Improving fresh apricot ( Prunus armeniaca L.) quality and antioxidant capacity by storage at near freezing temperature

This report forms a part in our long-term study dedicated to reveal the antioxidant properties of apricot fruits through several years. Nineteen apricot cultivars and 8 hybrids were comparatively analysed. Total phenol content and antioxidant activity showed a good correlation. The tested cultivars and hybrids could be arranged in three groups representing different antioxidant activities, 12 entries were involved in the group with relatively low antioxidant capacity (FRAP value < 1500 mmol/L); 10 accessions were classified in the group with medium antioxidant capacity (1500 mmol/L < FRAP value < 3000 mmol/L); and 5 genotypes were grouped to the category of high antioxidant value (FRAP > 3000 mmol/L). `Morden 604' produced a surpassingly outstanding antioxidant character. H-donating ability has further supported our results. Phenolic substances were accumulated and ferric reducing ability was increased in the ripe fruits compared to the unripe ones. High levels of variations in the total phenol content and antioxidant capacity in of apricot fruits were revealed in this study. Environment, year or rootstocks may also influence the antioxidant properties of fruits. however it seems to be convincing that crossing parents with outstanding antioxidant character can produce hybrids with higher antioxidant capacity. Hungarian apricots are widely appreciated for their premium flavour and — as it was evidenced in this study — for their relatively good antioxidant properties. However, delicious fruits should be made functional foods having beneficial health effects through accumulating large amounts of antioxidant molecules in the fruit flesh.

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Effect of Methyl Jasmonate, Cytokinin, and Lavender Oil on Antioxidant Enzyme System of Apricot Fruit (Prunus armeniaca L.)

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13158565 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (15) ◽

pp. 8565

Author(s):

Seyda Cavusoglu ◽

Nurettin Yilmaz ◽

Firat Islek ◽

Onur Tekin ◽

Halil Ibrahim Sagbas ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Enzyme Activity ◽

Methyl Jasmonate ◽

Prunus Armeniaca ◽

Lavender Oil ◽

Defense Systems ◽

Antioxidant Enzyme System ◽

Prunus Armeniaca L ◽

Antioxidant Defense Systems ◽

And Storage

Various treatments are carried out in order to extend both the shelf life and storage life of fresh fruit and vegetables after harvest and among them non-toxic for humans, environmentally and economically friendly alternative treatments are gained more importance. In the current study, methyl jasmonate (MeJA), cytokinin, and lavender oil which are eco-friendly and safe for human health were applied on apricot fruit. The treated fruit were stored at 0 °C and 90–95% relative humidity for 25 days and catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) enzyme activities and lipid peroxidation of apricots after treatments were studied. According to the findings obtained from the study, it was observed that 5 ppm cytokinin and 1000 ppm lavender oil treatments of apricot fruit gave better APX and CAT enzyme activity, respectively. In addition, better SOD enzyme activity in fruit was obtained with MeJA+lavender oil treatments. As a result, it can be emphasized that the product quality of apricot fruit is preserved as both the eco-friendly application of MeJA, cytokinin, and lavender oil separately from each other and the treatment of combinations between these compounds activate the enzymatic antioxidant defense systems of apricot fruit after harvest.

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Genetic Diversity Analysis and Population Structure in Apricot (Prunus Armeniaca L.) Grown Under North-Western Himalayas Using ISSR Markers

Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences ◽

10.1016/j.sjbs.2021.06.051 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Zahid Nabi Sheikh ◽

Vikas Sharma ◽

Rafiq Ahmad Shah ◽

Neha Sharma ◽

Baby Summuna ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Genetic Diversity ◽

Population Structure ◽

Issr Markers ◽

Prunus Armeniaca ◽

Diversity Analysis ◽

Western Himalayas ◽

Genetic Diversity Analysis ◽

Prunus Armeniaca L ◽

North Western

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Diversity and Relationships among Neglected Apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) Landraces Using Morphological Traits and SSR Markers: Implications for Agro-Biodiversity Conservation

Plants ◽

10.3390/plants10071341 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (7) ◽

pp. 1341

Author(s):

Giandomenico Corrado ◽

Marcello Forlani ◽

Rosa Rao ◽

Boris Basile

Keyword(s):

Prunus Armeniaca ◽

Ex Situ ◽

Skin Colour ◽

Maintenance Breeding ◽

Prunus Armeniaca L ◽

Ex Situ Collection ◽

Loss Of Diversity ◽

Ssrs Markers ◽

On Farm ◽

Simple Sequence

Apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) is an economically important tree species globally cultivated in temperate areas. Italy has an ample number of traditional varieties, but numerous landraces are abandoned and at risk of extinction because of increasing urbanization, agricultural intensification, and varietal renewal. In this work, we investigated the morphological and genetic diversity present in an ex-situ collection of 28 neglected varieties belonging to the so-called “Vesuvian apricot”. Our aim was to understand the level of diversity and the possible link between the promotion of specific fruit types (e.g., by public policies) and the intraspecific variation in apricot. The combination of five continuous and seven categorical traits allowed us to phenotypically distinguish the varieties; while fruit quality-related attributes displayed high variation, both apricot size and skin colour were more uniform. The twelve fluorescent-based Simple Sequence Repeats (SSRs) markers identified cultivar-specific molecular profiles and revealed a high molecular diversity, which poorly correlated with that described by the morphological analysis. Our results highlighted the complementary information provided by the two sets of descriptors and that DNA markers are necessary to separate morphologically related apricot landraces. The observed morphological and genetic differences suggest a loss of diversity influenced by maintenance breeding of specific pomological traits (e.g., skin colour and size). Finally, our study provided evidence to recommend complementary strategies to avoid the loss of diversity in apricot. Actions should pivot on both the promotion of easily identified premium products and more inclusive biodiversity-centred on-farm strategies.

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