Antioxidants Content in Empetrum nigrum Fresh and Dried Fruits

Empetrum nigrum L. (crowberry or black crowberry) belongs to Ericaceae (Empetraceae) family and is a circumboreal species, including both arctic and alpine environments as well as temperate and sub-arctic climates. The species is divided into two subspecies, whether is a plant produces hermaph-roditic flowers (E. nigrum ssp. hermaphroditum) or is dioecious (E. nigrum ssp. nigrum). There is currently a great interest around the world for forest fruit and their potential beneficial health effects. Fruits contain and synthesize many compounds which are helpful against many chronic diseases because of their good antioxidant properties, as in the case of the Empetrum (1). Some of maladies can appear in our body because of the imbalance between antioxidants and free radicals. Generally, through significant contents and the phytochemicals number from Empetrum sp. such as ascorbic acid, carotenoids, flavonoids, phenolic acids and tocopherols these berries may contribute at the maintaining of health. Unlike the cultivated berries which exerted lower antioxidant activity several wild berries like crowberry (E. ni-grum), cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus), aronia (Aro-nia melanocarpa) have very high antioxidant activities. The bland or slightly acidic Empetrum sp. fruit are very juicy and have high level of anthocyanin pigments in the skin; they may be eaten raw or processed. Because of natural purple colorant, the Empetrum fruit is used for food products and antioxidant capacity benefits. Leaves, stems and roots were used by native cultures in various extract mixture as a cathartic, diuretic, antidiarrheal treatment as well as to treat eyes and liver or kidney disease (2), because of their antibacterial and antifungal compounds as well as anti-inflammatory effect (3). Some researcher evidenced the decrease of the total cholesterol, triglyceride and low density lipo-protein (LDL), by intake of 2 grams of powdered crowberries daily for four weeks, this study being effected at 55 healthy volunteered subjects (4). From the reason of E. nigrum multiple beneficial effects the aim of this study was to compare the content of some non-enzymatic antioxidants (po-lyphenols, flavonoids and total anthocyanins) from fresh and dried fruits; the sample of E. ni-grum were collected from spontaneous flora of Harghita district from 1050m altitudes. Total polyphenol content (as galic acid equiva-lent/g DW) of Empetrum samples was higher in the methanolic extract of dried sample than fresh fruits, increase beeing by 1.60-fold (Table 1). There are contradicting data in several studies regarding the effects of heat treatment on the total phenolic content in fruits or vegetables. …