Antioxidant phytochemicals of Byrsonima ligustrifolia throughout fruit developmental stages

Byrsonima ligustrifolia is a small and coloured underutilized fruit with no scientific literature about its antioxidant capacity and content of individual phytochemicals. The present work evaluated the antioxidant capacity of B. ligustrifolia fruit throughout maturation process by Folin-Ciocalteu, ABTS, and DPPH methods, and quantified by HPLC-DAD, six polyphenolic compounds: cyanidin-3-glucoside, pelargonidin-3-glucoside, gallic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, p-coumaric acid, and catechin. Besides that, total flavonoids (TF), total monomeric anthocyanins (TMA), and ascorbic acid (AA) were analysed. AA did not show correlation with antioxidant activity. TF and phenolic acids decreased with maturation process and had strong positive correlation with antioxidant capacity. TMA, cyanidin-3-glucoside and gallic acid were present in the fruit in levels that are difficult to find in other berries. These results expose a potential approach for improving human health through consumption of B. ligustrifolia fruit.