This study was carried out to investigate the in vitro antioxidant potentials of the leaves and fruits of Nauclea latifolia, a straggling shrub or small tree, native to tropical Africa and Asia. Hot water extracts of the leaves and fruits of Nauclea latifolia were assessed for their total polyphenolic, flavanol, and flavonol contents as well as 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging abil...

Mangabeira (Hancornia speciosa Gomes), a native plant in Brazil, is found growing spontaneously in various regions of the country. The high perishability of tropical fruits such as mangaba, causes it to be necessary to use technologies that promote conservation, aiming to increase the shelf life of this fruit and add value. The objective of this study was to compare the mangabas lyophilization ...

The effects of freeze-drying on antioxidant compounds and antioxidant activity of five tropical fruits, namely starfruit (Averrhoa carambola L.), mango (Mangifera indica L.), papaya (Carica papaya L.), muskmelon (Cucumis melo L.), and watermelon Citruluss lanatus (Thunb.) were investigated. Significant (p < 0.05) differences, for the amounts of total phenolic compounds (TPC), were found between...

The present study assessed the fruiting pattern, bird foraging behavior, and sugar content of ripe fruits of two sympatric species of Rubiaceae (Psychotria brasiliensis and P. nuda). This study was carried out in an Atlantic forest area on Ilha Grande, RJ, between August 1998 and July 1999. Fruit production occurred year round, with a peak of mature P. brasiliensis fruits in December 1998 and a...

In the dry forest of Santa Rosa National Park, Costa Rica, the understory shrub Jacquinia nervosa presents an inverse pattern of phenology that concentrates vegetative growth and reproduction during the dry season. In this study, we tested the "escape from herbivory" hypothesis as a potential explanation for the inverse phenological pattern of J. nervosa. We monitored leaf, flower and fruit pro...