The Potencial of Campomanesia phaea O. Berg Landrum (Cambuci) as Natural Source of Vitamin C

Fruit is an essential part of a healthy diet preventing risks. This protective action has been attributed mainly to its bioactive compounds, which have antioxidant properties. Ascorbic acid, also named vitamin C, is the most important water-soluble reducing compound naturally present in fruit and vegetables that contributes to antioxidant defense against oxidative stress. Vitamin C is often used as a nutritional quality indicator of fruit and vegetables. Still little is known scientifically for the endemic species in Brazil's São Paulo State located in the Atlantic Forest biome, the Campomanesia phaea (O.Berg) Landrum (cambuci) from the family of Myrtaceae, traditionally used by communities in this region. This study evaluated the cambuci fruit in nature and the fruit pulp when submitted to different conservation treatments for the evaluation of levels of vitamin C (L-ascorbic acid), an important indicator of the quality of fruits and foods during processing and storage. The evaluation of the vitamin C content was performed by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC), when subjected to pasteurization and freezing during different periods of conservation. The results showed that the cambuci have average significant levels of L-ascorbic acid (66.94mg / 100g of cambuci). After the agro-industrial treatments, the pulp showed significant decreases (p ≤ 0.05) of L-ascorbic; however, it still exhibited significant mean levels, the initial content being 51.04 mg / 100g cambuci, for frozen pasteurized pulp and 62.15 mg / 100g cambuci to frozen pulp. Thus, the study showed that the inclusion of Campomanesia phaea (cambuci) in the human diet could be an alternative source to provide vitamin C, and could provide opportunities, employment and income increase for traditional communities, stimulating the growth for an important local business chain, taking advantage of the Brazilian biodiversity.