Evaluation of antioxidant properties in fresh and pickled papaya

Preservative fruits have gained popularity in recent years as part of food consumption, but their benefits towards human health are not known. This study compared total phenolic (TPC), total flavonoid (TFC), β-carotene, lycopene, ascorbic acid (AA) contents and antioxidant properties between fresh and pickled papaya. The results indicated that mean TPC (mg gallic acid equivalent/100 g dry samples), TFC (mg rutin equivalent/100 g dry samples), β-carotene (μg/100 g edible portions), lycopene (μg/100 g edible portions) and AA content (mg/100 g edible portions) were higher in fresh papaya (141.66 ± 11.71; 57.80 ± 2.11; 793.83 ± 5.47; 779.69 ± 5.55; 70.37 ± 0.65) as compared to pickled form. Antioxidant activity (%) measured by DPPH and β-Carotene-Linoleate bleaching method was higher in fresh papaya (56.83 ± 4.68; 77.56 ± 1.40). Total phenolic, total flavonoid, ascorbic acid, beta carotene and lycopene were strongly correlated with antioxidant activity and scavenging activity (0.905 ≤ r ≤ 1.00) indicating that were important contributors to antioxidant properties in papaya extracts. The pickling process of papaya caused a significant decrease in their antioxidant component and activity.