ARS | Publication request: The next generation of superfruits: enhancing anthocyanin rich black raspberries

Submitted to: American Chemical Society Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: May 17, 2012
Publication Date: August 21, 2012
Citation: Lee, J., Dossett, M., Finn, C.E. 2012. The next generation of superfruits: enhancing anthocyanin rich black raspberries. American Chemical Society 244th National Meeting. Abstracts. 128.

Technical Abstract: Our research group has worked the last seven years on developing black raspberries with improved disease resistance and phytochemical traits. We have been awarded USDA/NIFA-Specialty Crops Research Initiative (SCRI) funding to continue our project as a multi-region and international collaboration enhancing black raspberries. Current interest in the rich color of black raspberries, and their historical use as an effective dye, derive from their anthocyanin composition and content. Here, we report our findings on 1044 analyzed samples, including new data from 78 wild populations representing 18 states and two Canadian provinces. All were collected as wild seedlings, grown in a common environment, and evaluated over two growing seasons. Total anthocyanins in normally pigmented fruit ranged from 39-996 mg·100 mL-1 (expressed as cyanidin-3-glucoside; 25 fold difference), confirming that not all black raspberries are equal in natural pigment production. We have also identified a unique mutant black raspberry that lacks rutinoside-containing anthocyanins. Until the discovery of this mutant, the anthocyanins of black raspberries were considered to comprise of (in elution order): cyanidin-3-sambubioside, cyanidin-3-xylosylrutinoside, cyanidin-3-glucoside, cyanidin-3-rutinoside, pelargonidin-3-rutinoside, and peonidin-3-rutinoside. A reassessment of the literature, concurrent with our data, showed that some reports had misidentified cyanidin-3-xylosylrutinoside as cyanidin-3-sambubioside-5-rhamnoside. We recently published a review article to rectify many such conflicting issues with black raspberry information. Our presentation will incorporate some of these findings.