Amino acid content, fatty acid profile and radical scavenging capacities of Coccinia grandis (L.) voigt. fruits

Abstract

In Sudan, the unripe (green) fruits of Coccinia grandis (L.) Voigt. (Cucurbitaceae) are eaten raw as salads or cooked by either boiling or frying in oil. In this study the amino acid content, fatty acid profile and radical scavenging capacities of the raw and boiled fruits were determined. The total amino acids ranged from 7736 mg/100 g in raw fruits to 7766 mg/100 g in boiled fruits and with the exception of leucine, boiling did not cause significant difference in the essential amino acids content (32.5%) of the fruits. Boiling caused significant (p<0.05) change in the amount of the total saturated (from 38.04% in raw fruits to 14.156% in boiled ones) and unsaturated fatty acids (from 57.59% in raw fruits to 85.774% in boiled ones). Moreover, boiling caused significant (p<0.05) losses of vitamin C by 73% and polyphenols by 70.6 % contents. The high antioxidant activity of the raw fruits (IC50 22 mg/L), determined by DPPH and ABTS assays, was declined dramatically upon boiling. In conclusion, the results of this study suggested that fruits of C. grandis could have health beneficial effect and their consumption in the raw state is preferable.