Weight loss and antioxidants degradation in spears of five asparagus cultivars during cold and freeze storage (original) (raw)
Australian Journal of Crop Science
Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L) is considered as a vegetable rich in antioxidants. The present study investigated and compared the weight loss and degradation of antioxidants including ascorbic acid (ASC), glutathione (GSH) and cysteine (CYS) in spears of five asparagus cultivars (Bonlim, Eposs, Mars, Thielim and Vulkan). Spears were stored either under cold storage at 4 °C for 12 days or were deep frozen at - 20 °C for 12 months. The results showed that there are significant differences among asparagus cultivars with respect to their weight loss and antioxidants content of ASC, GSH and CYS. Weight loss and degradation of antioxidants were increased with increasing storage duration. At the end of 12 days period of cold storage, the cultivar Eposs showed the highest weight loss with 3.14%, while for the cultivar Vulkan, the lowest weight loss with 2.14% was recorded. When spears were deep frozen, the weight loss was lower than that recorded under cold storage. After 6 months of s...
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