Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2021 Jul;86(7):2949-2961.
doi: 10.1111/1750-3841.15784. Epub 2021 Jun 19.

Influence of production systems on phenolic characteristics and antioxidant capacity of highbush blueberry cultivars

Young Sung Jung  1 , In Ae Kwak  2 , Sang Gil Lee  3 , Hye-Sung Cho  4 , Youn-Sup Cho  4 , Dae-Ok Kim  1   2
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Influence of production systems on phenolic characteristics and antioxidant capacity of highbush blueberry cultivars

Young Sung Jung et al. J Food Sci. 2021 Jul.

Abstract

Blueberry is a crop grown worldwide due to the excellent quality and high polyphenol content of its fruit and tolerance to cold conditions. We investigated the influence of three production systems, namely an open field, heated greenhouse, and non-heated (plastic) greenhouse, on the phenolic characteristics (total phenolic, flavonoid, and anthocyanin content) and antioxidant capacities of "Spartan" (northern highbush), "Sharpblue" (southern highbush), and "O'Neal" (southern highbush) blueberry cultivars. The non-heated production system showed the highest phenolic characteristics and antioxidant capacity in "Spartan" and "O'Neal," while the open field production system showed the highest phenolic characteristics and antioxidant capacity in "Sharpblue." Derivatives of delphinidin and malvidin were two of the most abundant anthocyanins. The heated greenhouse production system resulted in larger amounts of delphinidin derivatives compared with the other production systems, while the blueberry grown in the non-heated greenhouse produced larger amount of malvidin derivatives. The anthocyanin profiles varied according to production system and blueberry cultivars. The principal component analysis loading plot of blueberries for individual anthocyanins explained over 95% of the total variance. In summary, the results of this study suggest that a strategic approach to blueberry production could elevate the phenolic content and antioxidant capacity of cultivated blueberry. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: The highbush blueberry, a rich source of bioactive polyphenols, is a popular fruit. The microclimate of the production system of highbush blueberries affects the concentrations of antioxidative phenolic compounds such as anthocyanins. Therefore, discovering and applying the appropriate method of production for each blueberry cultivar could facilitate production of high-quality blueberries rich in phenolic antioxidants.

Keywords: anthocyanin; northern highbush; principal component analysis; production system; southern highbush; total phenolics.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

REFERENCES

    1. Apak, R., Gorinstein, S., Böhm, V., Schaich, K. M., Özyürek, M., & Güçlü, K. (2013). Methods of measurement and evaluation of natural antioxidant capacity/activity (IUPAC Technical Report). Pure and Applied Chemistry, 85, 957-998.
    1. Bae, I. Y., An, J. S., Oh, I. K., & Lee, H. G. (2017). Optimized preparation of anthocyanin-rich extract from black rice and its effects on in vitro digestibility. Food Science and Biotechnology, 26, 1415-1422.
    1. Bao, T., Xu, Y., Gowd, V., Zhao, J., Xie, J., Liang, W., & Chen, W. (2016). Systematic study on phytochemicals and antioxidant activity of some new and common mulberry cultivars in China. Journal of Functional Foods, 25, 537-547.
    1. Cardeñosa, V., Girones-Vilaplana, A., Muriel, J. L., Moreno, D. A., & Moreno-Rojas, J. M. (2016). Influence of genotype, cultivation system and irrigation regime on antioxidant capacity and selected phenolics of blueberries (Vaccinium corymbosum L.). Food Chemistry, 202, 276-283.
    1. Castrejón, A. D. R., Eichholz, I., Rohn, S., Kroh, L. W., & Huyskens-Keil, S. (2008). Phenolic profile and antioxidant activity of highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) during fruit maturation and ripening. Food Chemistry, 109, 564-572.

Publication types