Abstract:
Recent trends in the food industry combined with novel methods in agriculture could
transform rowan into a valuable raw material with potential technological applications. Thus,
the aim of this research was to investigate the content of bioactive compounds in its fruits and to
assess the color and antioxidant stability of the extracts prepared from such fruits during various
thermal treatments and at different pH and ionic strength values. Various spectrophotometric
methods, HPLC, and capillary electrophoresis were used to quantify the concentrations of bioactive
compounds—polyphenols, carotenoids, organic acids, and to assess antioxidant activity and color.
The results show that rowan berries contain circa 1.34–1.47 g/100 g of polyphenols among which
include catechin, epicatechin, ferulic acid methyl ester, procyanidin B1, etc.; ca 21.65 mg/100 g of
carotenoids including zeaxanthin, b-cryptoxanthin, all-trans-b-carotene, and various organic acids
such as malic, citric, and succinic, which result in a high antioxidant activity of 5.8 mmol TE/100 g.
Results also showed that antioxidant activity exhibited high stability when the extract was subjected
to various thermal treatments, pHs, and ionic strengths, while color was mainly impacted negatively
when a temperature of 100 C was employed. This data confirms the technological potential of this
traditional, yet often overlooked species.
