Qualidade pós-colheita de frutos de genótipos de umbuzeiro das mesorregiões da Borborema e do Agreste da Paraíba

Abstract

The umbuzeiro (Spondias tuberosa Arr. Cam.) is an exclusive species of Brazil and typical of the Caatingas of the Northeast. The umbu stands out among the fruits of the Brazilian semi-arid by the cultural identity, social and economic activity among the familiar farmers. Sometimes the exploitation of the properties of the umbu is compromised by the simple ignorance of its potentialities and the non-application of suitable technologies by the producers. In this work the physical, physical-chemical characteristics, centesimal composition, bioactive compounds and the antioxidant activity of fruits of different umbuze genotypes were studied. The fruits were collected from 5 genotypes of umbuzeiros from the mesorregions of Borborema and the agreste of Paraíba. They were collected at the stage of green maturation with yellow pigmentation beginning popularly known as 'de vez' and evaluated for the physical characteristics of: fresh mass, length and diameter; and physical-chemical properties: pH, soluble solids, titratable acidity, soluble solids ratio and titratable acidity, ascorbic acid, chlorophyll, carotenoids, yellow flavonoids, phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity. It was verified with these analyzes that the average values of vitamin C oscillated between 7.86 and 20.2 mg.100g-1 of pulp, being the smallest value represented by genotype 5 and the highest value by genotype 1. The average content of chlorophyll in the different genotypes ranged from 0.22 to 0.48 mg.100g-1. The mean values of carotenoids are related to the degradation of chlorophyll, occurring the accentuated development of carotenoids. The values for carotenoids varied from 2.27 μg.100g-1 in genotype 1 to 4.66 μg.100g-1 in genotype 4. It can be concluded that fruits from genotype 5 presented physical characteristics superior to the others. Based on the physico-chemical characteristics, umbuzeiro fruits from genotype 4 presented maximum values of the SS/AT ratio, indicating better palatability and more promising quality aspects for the industry, as for the soluble solids content. The fruits of umbuzeiro analyzed, independent of the genotype presented in their composition the presence of bioactive compounds that constitute a potential source of natural antioxidants for the human diet. Fruits from genotype 1 showed higher antioxidant activity. The characterization of the fruits of umbuzeiro of the evaluated genotypes contributed to the identification of plants potentially useful for industry and to determine the genetic variability of the species.