Influence of storage temperature and low‐temperature conditioning on the levels of health‐promoting compounds in Rio Red grapefruit

• Published in: Food science & nutrition Vol. 5; no. 3; pp. 545 - 553
• Main Authors: Chaudhary, Priyanka R., Yu, Xiang, Jayaprakasha, Guddadarangavvanahally K., Patil, Bhimanagouda S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01-05-2017; John Wiley and Sons Inc
• Subjects: Acidity; Ascorbic acid; Carotenoids; Chilling; Chilling injury; Citrus fruits; Citrus paradisi; Cold storage; Conditioning; Cooling; Flavonoids; Fruits; Grapefruit; Health; health‐promoting compounds; Injury prevention; Limonoids; Low temperature; low‐temperature conditioning; Lycopene; Original Research; quarantine; Ripening; Scavenging; Storage temperature; Temperature effects; United States > US; Texas; Israel; quarantine; low‐temperature conditioning; health‐promoting compounds; grapefruit; Chilling injury
• ISSN: 2048-7177; 2048-7177
• DOI: 10.1002/fsn3.429

Commercial operations use low‐temperature conditioning of citrus fruits to reduce the incidence of chilling injury (CI) during cold storage and quarantine treatments. Rio Red grapefruits (Citrus paradisi Macf) were stored for 12 weeks at 11°C or 5°C; an additional set was temperature conditioned at 16°C for 7 days before storing at 5°C (CD). Every 3 weeks, samples were assessed for chilling injury (CI) and health‐promoting compounds such as ascorbic acid, carotenoids, limonoids, flavonoids, and furocoumarins. Low‐temperature conditioning significantly reduced CI but did not affect the total soluble solids, acidity, and ripening ratio. After 12 weeks of storage, grapefruits showed no significant differences in lycopene, narirutin, poncirin, furocoumarins, and radical scavenging activity in all the three treatments. Limonin was significantly higher (p < .05) in CD fruits, nomilin was significantly higher in fruits stored at 11°C, whereas fruits stored at 5°C had lower levels of naringin, neohesperidin, and didymin after 12 weeks of storage. Low‐temperature conditioning treatment helped fruits to retain similar or higher levels of most of the health‐promoting compounds by the end of storage period while maintaining better quality than the nonconditioned fruits.
Rio Red grapefruits stored for 12 weeks at 11°C or 5°C and conditioned (CD) and levels of phytochemicals analyzed. Conditioning reduced chilling injury by 4.5‐ and 2.5‐fold at 9 and 12 weeks. No effect of treatments seen on lycopene, narirutin, poncirin, and furocoumarin levels. CD fruits had similar or higher levels of most of the phytochemicals at 12 weeks.