Natural diversity in health related phytochemicals in Turkish tomatoes

BACKGROUND: Tomatoes are important fruits in the Mediterranean diet and are considered to reduce the risk of different human diseases due to their antioxidative powers. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the biodiversity within a set of 50 tomato fruit accessions collected across Turkey concerning their antioxidant capacities and the levels of potential health-beneficial compounds including phenolic compounds, carotenoids, ascorbic acid and tocopherols. METHODS: All accessions were simultaneously grown in an open experimental field in 2017 and ripe fruits were harvested for analysis. Antioxidant capacities of both hydrophilic and lipophilic extracts were determined using spectrophotometric assays after which individual antioxidants were identified by HPLC using an on-line antioxidant detection system. Phenolic acids, flavonoids, carotenoids and vitamins C and E were quantified using HPLC. RESULTS: The results indicated that there is a wide diversity within this small collection with respect to their hydrophilic and lipophilic antioxidants. CONCLUSION: Hydrophilic antioxidant capacity of the tomatoes was generally related to chlorogenic acid and Vitamin C levels, while lipophilic antioxidants were correlated to all-trans lycopene.