Determination of Nutritional Content of Spondias Species from the Eastern Himalaya

Abstract

The present study was carried out with the aim to screen out the nutritional characteristics of three underutilized fruit species of the genus Spondias which are seen grown wild in the forest of the north-eastern region of India, as the detail information on nutrient composition of these fruit species is scarce and people are unaware of the nutritional factor though inadvertently consuming a good amount of nutrients from these fruits. The present nutritional assessment revealed that the fruit of Spondias pinnata was found to possess highest TSS content (15.27 °Brix) however it was observed to exhibit higher acidity (4.59%) as well. The minimum titratable acidity was found in Spondias axillaris (2.45%). Spondias pinnata exhibited the highest ascorbic acid content (74.16 mg/100 g) followed by Spondias axillaris (61.60 mg/100 g) while the lowest (31.55 mg/100 g) was found in Spondias cytherea. Further, from the experiment, it was found that Spondias pinnata having the highest ascorbic acid was also found to exhibit highest DPPH free radical scavenging activity (68.49%). Spondias pinnata was also found to possess maximum reducing sugar (7.32%), total carbohydrate (12.51%), total chlorophyll (0.03 mg/g), total carotenoid (1.30 mg/100 g) and starch content (195.72 mg/100 g). As far as total free amino acid was concern, Spondias cytherea recorded highest total free amino acid content (158.67 mg/100 g) showing a wide variation in comparison to Spondias axillaris (25.33 mg/100 g) and Spondias pinnata (22.67 mg/100 g). These wild fruit species under study proved to be a good source of nutrients with a potential to fulfill the nutritional requirements locally.