Fruit Quality Characterization of New Sweet Cherry Cultivars as a Good Source of Bioactive Phenolic Compounds with Antioxidant and Neuroprotective Potential
Fabiana Antognoni,
Giulia Potente,
Roberto Mandrioli,
Cristina Angeloni,
Michela Freschi,
Marco Malaguti,
Silvana Hrelia,
Stefano Lugli,
Fabio Gennari,
Enrico Muzzi,
Stefano Tartarini
Affiliations
Fabiana Antognoni
Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Corso d’Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini, Italy
Giulia Potente
Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Corso d’Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini, Italy
Roberto Mandrioli
Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Corso d’Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini, Italy
Cristina Angeloni
School of Pharmacy, University of Camerino, Via Madonna delle Carceri 9, 62032 Camerino (MC), Italy
Michela Freschi
Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Corso d’Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini, Italy
Marco Malaguti
Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Corso d’Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini, Italy
Silvana Hrelia
Department for Life Quality Studies, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Corso d’Augusto 237, 47921 Rimini, Italy
Stefano Lugli
Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 46, 40127 Bologna, Italy
Fabio Gennari
Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 46, 40127 Bologna, Italy
Enrico Muzzi
Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum—University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 46, 40127 Bologna, Italy
Stefano Tartarini
Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Biology Building, Via Giuseppe Campi 213/D, 41125 Modena, Italy
Sweet cherries (Prunus avium L.) are highly appreciated fruits for their taste, color, nutritional value, and beneficial health effects. In this work, seven new cultivars of sweet cherry were investigated for their main quality traits and nutraceutical value. The phytochemical profile of three classes of phenolic compounds and the antioxidant activity of the new cultivars were investigated through high-performance liquid chromatography with diode array detection (HPLC-DAD) and spectrophotometric assays, respectively, and compared with those of commonly commercialized cultivars. Cyanidine-3-O-rutinoside was the main anthocyanin in all genotypes, and its levels in some new cultivars were about three-fold higher than in commercial ones. The ORAC-assayed antioxidant capacity was positively correlated with the total anthocyanin index. The nutraceutical value of the new cultivars was investigated in terms of antioxidant/neuroprotective capacity in neuron-like SH-SY5Y cells. Results demonstrated that the new cultivars were more effective in counteracting oxidative stress and were also able to upregulate brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a pro-survival neurotrophin, suggesting their potential pleiotropic role in counteracting neurodegenerations.
