Changes in Compositional Properties during Fruit Development and On-Tree Ripening of Two Common Apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) Cultivars.

The objective of the present study was to investigate the variations in some major primary (sugars and organic acids) and secondary (phenolics, ß-carotene) metabolite contents during fruit development and ripening in two important apricot cultivars (Hacihaliloglu and Kabaasi). The changes in the compositional properties of two apricot cultivars were monitored during fruit development with one-week intervals from 56 to 119 days after blossom. During fruit development, the contents of organic acids and phenolics decreased whereas that of sucrose and sorbitol increased. p-Coumaric acid was the only phenolic compound which increased in concentration during fruit development regardless of the cultivar. The content of the other phenolic compounds decreased in a cultivar-dependent manner. The ß-carotene content of the cultivars showed distinct patterns of change such that 3 fold increase in ß-carotene content of Kabaasi cultivar was observed whereas the ß-carotene content of the Hacihaliloglu cultivar did not show any significant change during fruit development.

Rapid, simultaneous and non-destructive assessment of the moisture, water activity, firmness and SO2 content of the intact sulphured-dried apricots using FT-NIRS and chemometrics.

The potential of using FT-NIR spectroscopy for the rapid and non-destructive measurement of the moisture, water activity, firmness and SO2 content of the intact sulphured-dried apricots (SDA) was investigated for the first time in the literature. The partial least squares regression (PLS-R) models constructed using FT-NIR spectra were very successful in predicting the moisture content (R2p = 0.986, RMSEP = 1.22%, RPD = 9.15) and water activity (R2p = 0.987, RMSEP = 0.016, RPD = 9.37) of SDAs. Satisfactory results were also obtained for the models developed for the prediction of the firmness (R2p = 0.845, RMSEP = 0.445, RPD = 2.55) and SO2 content (R2p = 0.804, RMSEP = 349 mg kg-1, RPD = 2.27). These results clearly demonstrate that the major quality parameters of SDA can be simultaneously measured in a short time by FT-NIR spectroscopy without any need for the sample preparation or skilled laboratory personnel.