Influence of Cultivar and Industrial Processing on Polyphenols in Concentrated Sour Cherry (Prunus cerasus L.) Juice  


Maja Repajić¹, Danijela Bursać Kovačević¹, Predrag Putnik¹*, Verica Dragović-Uzelac¹,
Josipa Kušt¹, Zrinka Čošić² and Branka Levaj<sup>1


1</sup>Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, University of Zagreb, Pierottijeva 6, HR-10000
 Zagreb, Croatia
²Maraska d.d., Obala kneza Trpimira 7, HR-23000 Zadar, Croatia



Article history:
Received March 3, 2015
Accepted May 21, 2015


Key words: 
sour cherry, Marasca cv., Oblačinska cv., juice concentrate processing, polyphenolic content, anthocyanins, antioxidant activity

Summary:
The objective of this study is to investigate the infl uence of cultivar and industrial processing on total polyphenols, anthocyanins, hydroxycinnamic acids and antioxidant activity in concentrated sour cherry (Prunus cerasus L., cvs. Marasca and Oblačinska) juices. Samples were collected during four processing steps: from fresh fruit prior to processing, then from pressed, filtered and concentrated juices. The content of total phenols was the same in both cultivars, but antioxidant activity (Oblačinska>Marasca) and total monomeric anthocyanins (Marasca>Oblačinska) differed. All processing steps significantly influenced the content of total phenols, total monomeric anthocyanins and antioxidant activity. In all samples four major anthocyanins were identified by HPLC with UV/VIS PDA detector, listed in the descending order based on their abundance: cyanidin-3-glucosylrutinoside, cyanidin-3-rutinoside, cyanidin-3-sophoroside and cyanidin-3-glucoside. Marasca cv. contained more total anthocyanins, and contents of cyanidin-3-sophoroside and cyanidin-3-glucosylrutinoside. The content of total hydroxycinnamic acids was also higher in Marasca than Oblačinska cv. After processing, the concentration of all identified anthocyanins increased in both cultivars. Majority of the highest values of polyphenols were detected in the juice after pressing. The content of polyphenols and their antioxidant activity were considerably stable during industrial processing to concentrated juice. Although Marasca had higher polyphenolic content than Oblačinska, both cultivars showed promising industrial potential for processing to concentrated juice.

*Corresponding author:      This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
                                         +385 1 460 5036
                                          +385 1 460 5072