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Review
. 2017 Jan 19;6(1):7.
doi: 10.3390/antiox6010007.

Red Fruits: Extraction of Antioxidants, Phenolic Content, and Radical Scavenging Determination: A Review

Gádor-Indra Hidalgo  1 , María Pilar Almajano  2
Affiliations
Review

Red Fruits: Extraction of Antioxidants, Phenolic Content, and Radical Scavenging Determination: A Review

Gádor-Indra Hidalgo et al. Antioxidants (Basel). .

Abstract

Red fruits, as rich antioxidant foods, have gained over recent years capital importance for consumers and manufacturers. The industrial extraction of the phenolic molecules from this source has been taking place with the conventional solvent extraction method. New non-conventional extraction methods have been devised as environmentally friendly alternatives to the former method, such as ultrasound, microwave, and pressure assisted extractions. The aim of this review is to compile the results of recent studies using different extraction methodologies, identify the red fruits with higher antioxidant activity, and give a global overview of the research trends regarding this topic. As the amount of data available is overwhelming, only results referring to berries are included, leaving aside other plant parts such as roots, stems, or even buds and flowers. Several researchers have drawn attention to the efficacy of non-conventional extraction methods, accomplishing similar or even better results using these new techniques. Some pilot-scale trials have been performed, corroborating the applicability of green alternative methods to the industrial scale. Blueberries (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) and bilberries (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) emerge as the berries with the highest antioxidant content and capacity. However, several new up and coming berries are gaining attention due to global availability and elevated anthocyanin content.

Keywords: antioxidant extraction; berry; phenolic content; red fruit; scavenging assay.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Chemical groups of each acid derivative.
Figure 2
Figure 2
(a) Ellagic acid structure. (b) Chlorogenic acid structure.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Flavylium ion structure and chemical groups of the anthocyanidins present in red fruits.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Cyanidin-3-glucoside.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Chemical reaction involved in the most used scavenging assays [30,31,32,33,34,35].
Figure 6
Figure 6
Scheme of the extraction of antioxidants from red fruits.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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