Bioactive compounds and antioxidant capacities in different edible tissues of citrus fruit of four species

Different edible tissues of citrus fruit, namely juice sacs (JS), segment membrane (SM), and segment (Seg), of four species, were examined for contents of bioactive compounds and total antioxidant capacities (TAC) by ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay. Two flavanones (naringin and hesperidin) were identified by HPLC; hesperidin accounted for 18.5–38.5% of the total phenolics in the species Citrus unshiu, Citrus reticulata, and Citrus sinensis, while naringin was only found in Citrus changshanensis and it accounted for 53.7% of the total phenolics in SM of this species. In SM of all selected species, the contents of phenolic compounds and TAC were significantly higher than those in JS and Seg. Highest total phenolics, total flavonoids, naringin, and TAC were found in SM of C. changshanensis, while the highest carotenoid content was found in JS of C. reticulata. The contribution of vitamin C to TAC ranged from 26.9% to 45.9% in JS and Seg of all selected species. In SM, however, a high contribution from hesperidin was observed in C. unshiu (54.0%), C. sinensis (46.7%) and C. reticulata (30.0%). The results indicated that SM of citrus fruit were high in contents of bioactive compounds and TAC; it is thus recommended to consume citrus fruit with all edible tissues rather than juice or JS alone.