ARS | Publication request: FLAVONONES IN ORANGES AND THEIR NEAR RELATIVES: TANGERINES/MANDARINS, TANGORS, AND TANGELOS

Submitted to: Journal of Food Composition and Analysis
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: February 28, 2006
Publication Date: June 6, 2006
Citation: Peterson, J., Beecher, G.R., Bhagwat, S.A., Dwyer, J., Eldridge, A., Gebhardt, S.E., Haytowitz, D.B., Holden, J.M. Flavonones in oranges and their near relatives: tangerines/mandarins, tangors, and tangelos. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis. 19:S66-S73.

Interpretive Summary: Consumption of citrus fruits may be associated with lower risk of colorectal, esophageal, and stomach cancers and may also improve blood profiles. Citrus flavanones (a subclass of flavonoids) that consist >90% of total flavonoids in citrus may be involved in these beneficial health effects. Oranges, sweet and sour, and tangerines (mandarins) belong to the different species of the genus Citrus and tangors and tangelos are hybrids of these species. Analytical data on flavonoids were collected form literature dating from 1968 to 1998 and flavanone profiles of these citrus fruits were prepared. Sour oranges had the highest amount of total flavanones (48 mg/100g). Their profile was dominated by the flavanones naringin and neohesperdin that contain sugar, neohesperidose, which has tangy or bitter taste. Sweet oranges, tangerines and tangors had similar profiles that were dominated by hesperidin and narirutin flavanones that contain sugar, rutinose, which has a neutral taste. Total flavanones in this group were ~20 mg/100g. Tangelos were place between these two groups with total flavanones (30 mg/100g) and flavanone profile that had a mixture of four flavanones of the two groups. The database provides information on several varieties of citrus and eight flavanone compounds and will help in investigating relationship between intake of flavanones and disease risk.

Technical Abstract: Consumption of citrus fruits may be associated with lower risk of colorectal, esophageal, and stomach cancers and may also improve blood profiles. Flavanones constitute the vast majority of all flavonoids in citrus fruits such as sweet (Citrus sinensis) and sour oranges (C. aurantium) and their near relatives-tangerines/mandarins (C. reticulata), tangors, and tangelos and may be responsible for the beneficial health effects. The relevant chemical analytic literature (1968-1998) was researched, abstracted, documented, standardized, examined for quality, enumerated and summarized in a database for these citrus flavanones: hesperidin, naringin, narirutin, eriocitrin, neohesperidin, didymin, neoeriocitrin, and poncirin. Sour oranges had a distinct flavanone profile dominated by naringin and neohesperidin, and were highest in total flavanones (48 mg/100g). Total flavanones in sweet oranges, tangerines, and tangors were similar (~20 mg/100g), and hesperidin and narirutin dominated the flavanone profile for these three fruits. Total flavanones in tangelos (30 mg/100g) were midway between sour and sweet oranges and tangelo flavanones profile exhibited characteristics of both species. The database provides information on several varieties of citrus and eight flavanone compounds and will help in investigating relationship between intake of flavanones and disease risk.