Effect of In Vitro Gastrointestinal Digestion on Phytochemicals and Antioxidant Activities in Cherry Tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiforme)

Abstract

We investigated the impact of simulated in vitro gastrointestinal digestion on the levels of total polyphenols, total flavonoids, carotenoids, and antioxidant capacity in cherry tomatoes. The initial total polyphenol content of fresh tomatoes was 220.51 μg GAE/g, which decreased to 203.24 μg GAE/g after 120 min of stomach treatment and further decreased to 138.23 μg GAE/g after 120 min of small intestine treatment. Similarly, the initial total flavonoid content in fresh tomatoes was 43.28 μg QE/g, but after 120 min of small intestine digestion, it decreased by approximately 50.72% to 21.33 μg QE/g. Lycopene, lutein, and β-carotene also experienced a decrease of 69.71∼78.38% during the digestion process compared to fresh tomatoes. The antioxidant activity exhibited a reduction of 34.95∼37.67% compared to fresh tomatoes after digestion in the stomach and intestines. The bioactive compounds present in tomatoes undergo decomposition and conversion into other substances during digestion, and these degradation products are believed to inhibit the growth of SK-Hep1 human hepatoma cells while enhancing antioxidant activity within the intracellular environment.