Antioxidant complexes of sea buckthorn (Hippopha? rhamnoides L.) of northwest Russia

Sea buckthorn fruits, due to the content of complexes of water- and fat-soluble antioxidants, have therapeutic and prophylactic properties. Their content depends on the species, subspecies, varieties, botanical varieties, ecological and geographical origin of sea buckthorn fruits. The paper presents the results of studies of the composition of antioxidants and antioxidant activity of three botanical varieties of sea buckthorn (Hippopha? rhamnoides L.) growing in the Leningrad region of the northwestern region of Russia. As part of the antioxidant complex, the content of phenolic antioxidants (phenolic compounds, flavonoids, phenolic acids) and vitamin C was investigated. The greatest variability of water-soluble sea buckthorn antioxidants is associated with the content of vitamin C – from 82 to 297 mg/100g, depending on the botanical variety. The content of total phenolic compounds was 600–795 mg/100g, and the content of flavonoids and phenolic acids was 265–346 and 105–170 mg/100g, respectively. In the complex of fat-soluble antioxidants of sea buckthorn fruits of different varieties, the content of vitamin E and carotenoids was investigated, which was 6.9–8.3 and 10.7–14.9 mg/100g, respectively. The content of vitamin C influences the formation of antioxidant properties determined by the DPPH method and coulometric titration of water and alcohol fractions, forming a number of botanical varieties of sea buckthorn: Orange> Vitamin> Giant. The antioxidant activity of alcoholic fractions is 1.3–1.7 times higher than that of aqueous fractions, depending on the botanical variety of sea buckthorn fruits. The content of phenolic antioxidants (total phenolic compounds, flavonoids and phenolic acids) influenced the antioxidant activity determined by the FRAP method, forming a number of sea buckthorn varieties: Vitamin> Orange> Giant

Illustrated key to infraspecific taxa of Triticum durum Desf.

Classifications of the genus Triticum L. differ in approaches to the number and content of both intrageneric and infraspecific taxa. According to the «GrainTax» System, an on‑line source of information on the taxonomy of wheat, there are currently 7 main classifications of the genus Triticum L. These include a classification developed at the Department of Wheat Genetic Resources of VIR, which is referred to as the “Classification of Triticum by Dorofeev et al.” This is the world’s first standardized system that contains all known infraspecific taxa of wild and cultivated wheat species. A detailed classification makes it possible to identify a wide variety of forms when working with the genus Triticum L. and its individual species, which is especially important for collections preserved in genetic seed banks. In accordance with this system, durum wheat (T. durum Desf.) is regarded as a species that includes two subspecies, 131 botanical varieties and 42 forms united into six groups and three subgroups of varieties. The basis of the infraspecific system is made up of botanical varieties with a definite complex of morphological traits of the spike and kernel. The present work contains descriptions of each botanical variety and photographs of most of them.

Phenotypic variability of fruits and seeds in natural populations of Hymenaea stigonocarpa (Mart. Ex Hayne)

ABSTRACT Hymenaea stigonocarpa (Mart. Ex Hayne), popularly known as jatobá-do-cerrado, is a fruit tree widely distributed in the Brazilian Savanna, has multiple uses and is a promising genetic resource. This study aimed to physically characterize fruits and seeds of H. stigonocarpa, as well as to estimate the phenotypic variability at three hierarchical levels: populations, mother trees within populations, and fruits/seeds within mother trees. Fruits from six mother trees were sampled from each of the 25 natural populations found in the Brazilian Savanna. The morphometric characterization of 742 fruits was carried out by evaluating 10 quantitative traits in fruits and seeds. In addition, comparative analyses were performed between the average values of H. stigonocarpa and the botanical variety H. stigonocarpa var. brevipetiolata. Significant phenotypic variations were noticed at all hierarchical levels. A high phenotypic differentiation among the populations was observed for quantitative traits (fruit mass and size, pulp mass and seed mass), being higher when H. stigonocarpa var. brevipetiolata was included in the analysis.

Assessment of microorganism activity as bio-preservatives for perishable food

Analysis of the results of studying dynamics of microbiological indicators of perishable food (fresh tomatoes), shows that the control samples (fresh tomatoes without processing a preservative) on the 15th day of storage at 4±2 °C exceeds the QMA&OAMO index, on the 5th day yeast already detected. The activity of yeasts and molds on the surface of tomatoes treated with Nisin is reduced compared with the control. It was found that the new isolated microorganisms synthesizing bacteriocins exhibit the highest bioconservation efficiency compared to nisin and control. It was shown that QMA&OAMO does not exceed the maximum permissible value even at 35 days of storage, yeast and molds, E. coli group bacteria in 1.0 g and pathogenic microorganisms, including L. monocytogenes and Salmonella bacteria in 10.0 g were not detected in fresh tomatoes. As a result of the study of organoleptic quality indicators of perishable foods (fresh tomatoes), treated with selected strains of microorganisms (Bacillus subtilis, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Pseudomonas putida and Psychrobacter immobilis), stored for 35 days at 4±2 °C revealed that fresh tomatoes on the 35th day keep fresh, the fruit is clean, excessive moisture of fruits is not observed. Also fresh tomatoes were characterized by an edible degree of maturity. The taste and smell of the tomatoes were consistent with the botanical variety, while no extraneous taste and smell were observed.

A non-destructive method for monitoring the ripening of tomatoes based on their induction of chlorophyll fluorescence

Maturity is one of the most important factors associated with assessing the quality of tomatoes. The aim of this study is to develop a new device to measure the degree of ripeness of tomato fruits based on chlorophyll fluorescence. The results of this method, chlorophyll fluorescence, were compared with those of the widely used colorimeter for this purpose. Botanical variety of tomatoes “Alkazar” was used with different stages of maturity: green, breakers, turning, pink, light red, and red. The results indicated that specific parameters of the slow induction of chlorophyll fluorescence, such as the maximum chlorophyll fluorescence (Fm) and the coefficient of specific photosynthetic activity (Rfd), can be used to classify tomato fruits according to their maturity stage, as efficiently as the hue angle parameter of the color measurements. A correlation coefficient between the hue angle and the slow induction of chlorophyll fluorescence parameters was 0.96 with Fm, and 0.97 with Rfd. Using the hue angle or Fm, the fruits of all six-maturity stages were accurately classified. In conclusion, the developed device method is a non-destructive, innovative, convenient, and less time-consuming than the color-based method.

Use of energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence combined with chemometric modelling to classify honey according to botanical variety and geographical origin

Honey is one of the food commodities most frequently affected by fraud. Although addition of extraneous sugars is the most common type of fraud, analytical methods are also needed to detect origin masking and misdescription of botanical variety. In this work, multivariate analysis of the content of certain macro- and trace elements, determined by energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) without any type of sample treatment, were used to classify honeys according to botanical variety and geographical origin. Principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) were used to create classification models for nine different botanical varieties—orange, robinia, lavender, rosemary, thyme, lime, chestnut, eucalyptus and manuka—and seven different geographical origins—Italy, Romania, Spain, Portugal, France, Hungary and New Zealand. Although characterised by 100% sensitivity, PCA models lacked specificity. The PLS-DA models constructed for specific combinations of botanical variety-country (BV-C) allowed the successful classification of honey samples, which was verified by external validation samples.

Results of analyzing the passport database ‘Spring bread wheat landraces in the VIR collection’

Background. Recently, an increased interest in crop landraces has been observed among scientists working with plant genetic resources (PGR). Institutes have been organizing collecting missions to explore old varieties still cultivated locally. Attention paid to landraces is also associated with the introduction of GIS technologies into PGR studies. The N. I. Vavilov All-Russian Institute of Plant Genetic Resources (VIR) holds a unique collection of spring bread wheat landraces. One of the Institute’s top priorities is to develop and maintain a passport database, using a set of fields specifically fit for landraces.Analysis of the passport database. The passport database ‘Spring Bread Wheat Landraces in the VIR Collection’ is analyzed here. The database contains information on 5,925 accessions and has 36 fields. Statistical data are presented for the main fields: origin, collection site, botanical variety, year of registration in the collection, donor institute or expedition, and collector’s name.