Nutritional Composition and Antioxidant Properties of the Wild Edible Fruits of Tripura, Northeast India

Suresh Chandra Biswas, Pramanand Kumar, Raj Kumar, Subrata Das (), Tarun Kumar Misra and Dipankar Dey
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Suresh Chandra Biswas: Department of Chemistry, National Institute of Technology Agartala, Agartala 799046, India
Pramanand Kumar: Department of Chemistry, National Institute of Technology Patna, Patna 800005, India
Raj Kumar: Department of Environmental Science, Central University of South Bihar, Gaya 824236, India
Subrata Das: Department of Chemistry, National Institute of Technology Patna, Patna 800005, India
Tarun Kumar Misra: Department of Chemistry, National Institute of Technology Agartala, Agartala 799046, India
Dipankar Dey: Subject Matter Specialist—Soil Science, Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Khowai 799207, India

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 19, 1-16

Abstract: Fruits that are rich in nutrients and have antioxidant properties are essentially required for human health. These fruits are quite demanding to use pharmaceutically to produce natural drugs. Tripura, a Northeast state of India, is abundant in wild edible fruits, the nutritional values of which have not yet been fully explored. The nutrient composition and antioxidant properties of 06 (six) wild edible fruits viz. Wild orange ( Citrus macroptera ), Chinese lard ( Hodgsonia macrocarpa Cogn.), Madhabilata ( Stixis suaveolens Roxb. Pierre), Wild small black Jamun ( Syzygium assamicum ), Indian coffee plum ( Flacourtia jangomas Lour. Raeusch), and Gamboge ( Garcinia gummi-gutta (L.) Robs) were explored and are reported in this paper. All the observations were statistically analyzed and properly presented here. The study reveals that wild orange (220.75 mg/100 g) and Indian coffee plum (223.25 mg/100 g) are vitamin C-rich fruits. Madhabilata has high protein content (0.744%), whereas Gamboge yields an energetic fruit (124.92 Kcal/100 g). The energy parameter has a good correlation with ash (correlation coefficient ( r ) = 0.68), TSS ( r = 0.62), and protein ( r = 0.83). Nutrient minerals (mg/100 g), in general, are found quite high in wild orange (Na, 170.4; K, 55.40; Mg, 61.53; Zn, 6.85; Cu, 6.25). There is a good correlation between Na and K ( r = 0.58). Antioxidant activity (81.15 μmol/g) and metal chelating capacity (MCC) (39.45 mg/mL) are high in wild orange, and they have an excellent correlation ( r = 0.97). It has quite a high value of total phenolic content (TPC) (303.89 mg GAE/g) and total flavonoid content (TFC) (36.78 mg QE/g) as well. TPC and TFC have good correlations with antioxidant parameters ( r = 0.81 with TPC and 0.86 with TFC). Chloride (4.35 mg/100 g), nitrate (0.639 μg/100 g), and As(III) (0.27 mg/100 g) contents are found high in Indian coffee plum, Madhabilata, and Wild black Jamun, respectively. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed that total sugar, zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), and copper (Cu) are the important indicators to be given emphasis while studying the nutritional value of these minor fruits. Moreover, the results would provide a baseline database for the nutrient profile of these fruits as well as enhance awareness among the masses regarding the value of the fruit, which enhances and conserves the biodiversity of the forest area of Tripura.

Keywords: wild edible fruits; macronutrients; minerals; antioxidant; regression analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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