Comparative Nutritional Analysis and Antioxidant Activity of Fruit Juices of some Citrus spp

Fruit juices of four species of Citrus genus i.e. C. maxima, C. limon, C. sinensis, C. reticulata were analyzed for their nutritional content (i.e. soluble sugar, total RNA & pentose sugar, free amino acids, soluble protein, total phenolic compounds and vitamin-C) and antioxidant potential. The content of all studied parameters varied from one species to another but no specific trend was observed. The juice of C. reticulata was found to be rich in total soluble sugar (15.43 mg/100 ml) and free amino acids (15.18 mg/100 ml) as compared to other species of Citrus while C. sinensis contained the highest amount (23.07 mg/100 ml) of total phenolic content. Further, C. limon contained the highest amount of total soluble proteins (180.67 mg/100 ml), total RNA & pentose sugar content (131.07 mg/100 ml), and Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) content (67.97 mg/100 ml). C. sinensis & C. reticulata showed good reducing power activity at the dose of 300 μg/ml while C. limon showed good DPPH radical scavenging at all concentration ranges in comparison to the standard. Key wordsascorbic acid, soluble sugar, phenolic content, antioxidant activity and Citrus. _______________________________________________________________________________________ Kumar et al 2013/ Comparative Nutritional Analysis and Antioxidant Activity of Fruit Juices of some Citrus spp. 45 Octa Journal of Biosciences INTRODUCTION Malnutrition problem is a matter of great concern in developing countries. Health profile of a community is greatly influenced by its nutritional status and life style. India is one of the developing countries of the world, where aforesaid problem is very common, especially in villages. Nutritionist have raised concern on the nutritive value of cooking food because density of the most nutrients like protein, carbohydrates, vitamins and mineral are very poor (Reis et al., 1987). Fruits have been included in the human diet since prehistoric time and now in the western and developing countries, there is a habit to take fresh fruits after meal. In India different kinds of seasonal fruits are available which are rich in food nutrients, vitamins and minerals and also popular to all aged people. Particularly some seasonal Citrus fruits are very delicious and nutritious. Fruits are major source of above mentioned food supplements. Citrus is primarily valued for the fruits, which is either eaten alone as fresh fruit, processed into juice, or added to dishes and beverages. All species have traditional medicinal value also (Goethesson, 1997; Whistler, 1992 & 1996). The Citrus is rich source of Vitamin C. Its juice also contains carbohydrates, proteins, amino acids, phenolic compounds and minerals etc. Some times, after starvation of serious diseases, doctors suggest to take some Citrus fruits for vitamins, minerals and other necessary food supplements, which recover weak health condition by improving appetite quickly. Fruits and vegetables are rich of secondary metabolites such as phenolics which are now identified as natural antioxidant agents. Phenolic compounds have been shown to possess an antioxidant activity based on their (hydroxyl group) donation to free radicals (Karimi, et al., 2012, Parle & Chaturvedi, 2012). Therefore, present study was undertaken to analyze the comparative nutritive value and antioxidant potential of selected Citrus fruit species. MATERIALS AND METHODS The present study was conducted to analyze the nutritional and antioxidant potential of fruit juice of Citrus maxima (Chakotra -C), Citrus limon (Lemon -L), Citrus sinensis (Mosmi M) and Citrus reticulata (Orange O). Detailed methodology is given in following heads: