Antioxidant capacities, procyanidins and pigments in avocados of different strains and cultivars

Avocado (Persea americana) is an important tropical fruit, but little is known about their antioxidant capacities and phytochemical composition. The objective of this research was to determine antioxidant capacities, total phenolic content and identify and quantify major antioxidant compounds in avocados of different strains and cultivars. Ripe Florida avocados from seven cultivars (Slimcado, Booth 7, Booth 8, Choquette, Loretta, Simmonds, and Tonnage) of West Indian or Guatemalan strains were separated into seeds, peels and pulp, and freeze dried. Hass avocado of Mexican strain was chosen for comparison. Samples were extracted with acetone/water/acetic acid solvent and analysed using the Folin–Ciocalteu assay for total phenolic content. Antioxidant capacities were determined by oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) and DPPH assays. Procyanidins were identified and quantified using HPLC-MSn. Antioxidant pigments (chlorophylls and carotenoids) were estimated spectrophotometrically. For all varieties, seeds contained the highest antioxidant capacities, phenolic content, and procyanidins, whereas the pulp had the lowest. Procyanidins, including catechin, epicatechin, A- and B-type dimers, A- and B-type trimers, tetramers, pentamers and hexamers, were identified in peels and seeds using normal-phase HPLC–ESI-MSn. Antioxidant capacities, phenolic contents and procyanidins in avocados were highly correlated, suggesting that procyanidins were the major phenolic compounds that contributed to antioxidant capacities. Carotenoids and chlorophylls were found to be concentrated in avocado peels but did not correlate with antioxidant capacities. This study suggested that avocado seeds and peels, industrial wastes of avocado processing, can be exploited as source of antioxidants.