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Chemical and nutritional characterization of chañar flour from different geographical distribution

Abstract:

The chañar (Geoffroea decorticans) is a native plant that is distributed in arid and semi-arid regions of South America, whose fruits constitute a food resource for rural and native communities. The knowledge about biodiversity not only allows us to value these species, but also to generate alternatives for the use and consumption of new bio-based resources. Secondary metabolites constitute an important source of food additives, pharmaceutical and industrial products whose synthesis and composition is influenced by the environmental characteristics of where the plants grow. Given its wide geographical distribution, the phytochemical characterization of the Chañar fruits could present differences according to their origin. Therefore, the aim of this work was to study the chemical and nutritional composition of Geoffroea decorticans fruits from two Argentinean ecoregions: the Arid Chaco and Oriental Monte or Transitional Monte. It was determined the nutritional composition of integral flours from both origins and the total polyphenols content (TPC), anthocyanins and the in vitro antioxidant activity, both of integral and mesocarp flours were evaluated. The nutritional composition did not present significant differences between the samples. However, the TPC varied between 87-124 mg GAE/100g of dry flour, and was higher in the extracts of integral flours. Anthocyanin content in Río Negro samples was 70% higher than in Catamarca samples. Rio Negro's mesocarp flour extracts presented 20% less TPC than those from Catamarca, however, the antioxidant activity obtained by ABTS was comparable between them. In conclusion, the results suggest that the integral flour of G. decorticans could be used as a source of natural antioxidants for food use.