Nutritional composition and antioxidant and cancer chemopreventive activities of fruits of Psidiummyrtoides (O. Berg)

ABSTRACT: Psidiummyrtoides fruits food industries produce by-products such as liqueurs, ice cream, jellies, and juices. However, there needs to be more information about the nutritional composition of fruits, as well as the biological potential, mainly of seed flour.Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate the nutritional composition and antioxidant and cancer chemopreventive activities of pulp and seed of fruits of Psidiummyrtoides. Moisture content, total minerals and mineral profile, total lipids and fatty acids profile, total proteins, dietary fiber (soluble and insoluble) and total carbohydrates were analyzed. Vitamins C and complex B, organic acids and the profile of phenolic compounds were also determined. DPPH and ABTS methods evaluated the antioxidant activity, and cancer chemopreventive activity was evaluated by quinone reductase induction and NF-κB inhibitory activity. The fruits are a good source of thiamine, iron, phosphorus, potassium, fiber, and protein. Linoleic acid was the major fatty acid in both pulp and seed. Quercetin (1600 µg/100g) and pyrogallol(819 µg/100g) were the major phenolic compounds pulp and seed, respectively. The fruits showed strong antioxidant capacity, mainly the seeds, and the ability to induce quinone reductase activity, highlighting a cancer chemopreventive activity. Seed flour has a high potential to enrich food, in addition to valuing agro-industrial by-products, where we can highlight 25%, 13% and 37% of the recommended daily intake for iron (1.6 mg/100g), phosphorus (58 mg/100g) and vitamin B1 (450 µg/100g), respectively, in addition to antioxidant and cancer chemopreventive activities.