This specially curated collection features three reviews of current and key research on nutraceuticals in fruit and vegetables.
This specially curated collection features three reviews of current and key research on nutraceuticals in fruit and vegetables.
The first chapter provides a brief description of the chemistry of bioactive compounds (BCs) and their presence in temperate fruits, and discusses recent advances in strategies towards improving sustainable crop production for nutraceuticals. It examines polyphenols, carotenoids, vitamin C and production practices that influence bioactive compound synthesis.
The second chapter describes the claimed health benefits associated with the antioxidant properties of bioactive compounds found in mangoes, such as vitamin C, phenolics and carotenoids. The chapter also examines specific cell, animal and clinical studies that suggest mango pulp, juice and extract are effective against metabolic diseases and certain forms of cancer.
The final chapter considers how developments such as genetic dissection using fruit ripening mutants, new transgenic plants, and molecular breeding have opened a road map for scientists to further unravel the intricacies and regulation of genes governing fruit quality attributes. Improvements in precision in engineering plant genomes have enabled development of novel tomatoes with marketable traits such as higher carotenoid and anthocyanin content, both beneficial for human health.
Chapter 1 - Bioactive/nutraceutical compounds in fruit that optimize
human health benefits: Federica Blando and Miriana Durante, Institute of
Sciences of Food Production (ISPA), Italy; and B. Dave Oomah, formerly
Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre, Canada; 1 Introduction 2 Polyphenols 3
Carotenoids 4 Vitamin C 5 Production practices that influence bioactive
compound synthesis 6 Future trends and conclusion 7 Where to look for further
information 8 References
Chapter 2 - The nutritional and nutraceutical/functional properties of
mangoes: Laurent Urban, University of Avignon, France; Mônica Maria de
Almeida Lopes and Maria Raquel Alcântara de Miranda, Federal University of
Ceará, Brazil; 1 Introduction 2 Health benefits of mango fruits 3 Increasing
phytochemical concentrations in mango fruits 4 Pre- and post-harvest factors
influencing bioactive compounds of mango fruits 5 Case study: low fluence
pulsed light to enhance mango phytochemical content 6 Future trends and
conclusion 7 Where to look for further information 8 References
Chapter 3 - Genetic engineering of tomato to improve nutritional quality,
resistance to abiotic and biotic stresses, and for non-food applications: B.
Kaur and A. K. Handa, Purdue University, USA; and A. K. Mattoo, USDA-ARS,
USA; 1 Introduction 2 History of tomato transformation and challenges 3
Genetic engineering of tomato for fruit quality and shelf life 4 Abiotic
stress tolerance in tomato 5 Biotic stress tolerance 6 Tomato as a model
system for biopharming 7 Future trends and conclusion 8 Where to look for
further information 9 Acknowledgements 10 References
Dr. Federica Blando has a permanent position as a researcher at the Institute of Sciences of Food Production ISPA in Lecce (Apulia) / South of Italy. Federica Blando received her Ph.D. degree at the University of Pisa studying in vitro regeneration and propagation of fruit tree crops. Currently at the ISPA,her scientific activity is focused on the characterization of polyphenolic compounds and antioxidant activity from red fruits, as well as other fruit and vegetables, and processed products. Dr Avtar Handa as Professor of Horticulture at Purdue University, USA and is internationally-renowned for his research on tomato physiology. Dr Autar Mattoo is Research Leader of the Vegetable Laboratory at the USDAs Henry A. Wallace Research Center, USA is internationally-renowned for his research on tomato physiology.
