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Antioxidant compounds absorbed from our diet are thought to have a role in preventing chronic diseases that result from oxidative damage. Berry fruit have high levels of antioxidants, and further increases in antioxidant activity (AA) might be possible through breeding. We determined the AA, total phenolic content (TPH), and fruit weight in 16 blackberry and hybridberry (Rubus L.) cultivars harvested in New Zealand and Oregon in 2002 and 2003, to assess genetic and environmental variation. Both AA and TPH varied significantly between years within location, but not among cultivars or between locations per se. However, cultivar interactions with both location and year within location contributed to variation in both variates. In contrast, both cultivar and location contributed to variation in fruit weight, but years within location did not. However, the cultivar x year within location interaction was significant for this trait. Variance component distributions confirmed that cultivar and location effects together contributed little (<20%) to the total variation in either AA or TPH, while cultivar x environment interactions accounted for >50% of total variation in these traits. Cultivar and location effects together contributed ≈70 % of the total variation observed in fruit weight. Phenotypic correlations were significant between AA and fruit weight (r = -0.44), and between TPH and fruit weight (r = 4.51). When adjusted for fruit weight, analyses for AA and TPH demonstrated that cultivar effects approached significance (P = 0.06) and accounted for ≈25% of total variance, while location effects accounted for none. Although the cultivars in this study had diverse interspecific backgrounds, utilization of various Rubus species in blackberry and hybridberry breeding is not uncommon, and our results demonstrating significant cultivar x environment interaction for AA and TPH should be applicable to breeding for high AA genotypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dietary anthocyanins (ACYs) may give health benefits through their antioxidant activity (AA) or other physiological effects. We examined AA and ACY profiles and contents in 16 blackberry and hybridberry (Rubus L. species) cultivars harvested in 2002 and 2003 in New Zealand and Oregon. Total ACY content varied widely among cultivars harvested from a single site in a single year (e.g., from 58 to 343 mg/100 g fruit Oregon in 2003). For the 12 cultivars common to both sites and years, cultivar and year within location significantly affected total ACY content, accounting for 40% and 10% of total variation, respectively. Cultivar interactions with both location and year within location were also significant, together accounting for 39% of variation. Cyanidin 3-O-glucoside and cyanidin 3-O-rutinoside were identified in all cultivars in both locations in at least 1 year. Compared with total ACY, cultivar accounted for more variation in these two ACYs (63% and 92%, respectively), while cultivar interactions together accounted for a smaller, but statistically significant, proportion of variation (23% and 7%, respectively). Cyanidin 3-O-sophocoside and cyanidin 3-O-(2G-glucosylrutinoside) were identified in only four cultivars. Cultivar effects accounted for 64% and 76% of variation in these ACYs, respectively, while cultivar interactions together contributed 18% and 24%, respectively. For AA, cultivar effects were not significant, contributing 11% of variation; in contrast, year effect and cultivar ⊗ environment interactions were significant, contributing 22% and 55 % of total variation, respectively. Based on cultivar means for all 16 genotypes, the phenotypic correlation between AA and total ACY was positive but lower than that between AA and total phenolic content (TPH) (r = 0.63 and 0.97, respectively). Combinations of individual ACYs did not provide higher correlations with AA. Thus, ACY profiles and content are not as useful as TPH as a proxy measurement for AA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We determined variance components and narrow-sense heritability estimates for total and individual anthocyanin (ACY) content and antioxidant activity (AA) in fruit from 411 genotypes in a red raspberry (Rubus idaeus L.) factorial mating design based on 42 full-sib families derived from seven female and six male parents, harvested in 2002 and 2003. Within half-sib family total ACY content ranged from ≈1–60+ mg/100 g fruit in both seasons. The four major ACYs quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography also showed wide ranges each year. Female and male parent contributions to variation in total and individual ACYs were significant (P ≤ 0.001) in combined year analysis, and together accounted for 29 % to 48% of the total variation. A substantial proportion of the female contribution was attributed to the use of a pigment-deficient R. parvifolius L. ⊗ R. idaeus hybrid derivative as a female parent. Female ⊗ male interaction was nonsignificant and contributed negligibly to total variance. Year effects accounted for <2.5% of variation in ACYs and were only marginally significant. Year interactions were negligible. Within family variation (among plots and within plot) accounted for ≈50% of the variation in total ACY and 62% to 69% of the variation in individual ACYs. Combined year narrow-sense heritability estimates were high (h² = 0.54–0.90 for individual ACYs, 1.00 for total ACY) among all factorial genotypes, but moderate when the progeny of the R. parvifolius derivative were excluded (h² = 0.45–0.78 for individual ACYs, 0.74 for total ACY). The latter estimates are applicable to breeding programs in which pigment-deficient genotypes are rarely or never used in breeding. Parental main effects were significant for AA, together accounting for 19% of total variance; female ⊗ male interaction was nonsignificant. Year effects were marginally significant and year interactions nonsignificant; together these sources of variation contributed <2 % of total variation in AA. The majority of AA variation was found within- and among-plots within family. The phenotypic correlation between AA and total ACY was r = 0.53, and ranged from r = 0.21–0.46 between AA and individual ACYs; genetic correlations between AA and the ACYs were similar to the phenotypic correlations, suggesting predominantly additive genetic effects accounted for the phenotypic correlations. Linear modelling for AA based on individual ACYs and their interactions explained ≈0.53 of AA variation, substantially less than that explained by total phenolic content (R² = 0.88). Our results show substantial variation and moderate to high narrow-sense heritability estimates for red raspberry ACYs, but ACY content and profile information are ineffective proxies and predictors for AA in red raspberry fruit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Variance components and narrow-sense heritabilities were estimated for antioxidant activity (AA), total phenolic content (TPH), and fruit weight in red raspberry (Rubus idaeus L.) fruit from offspring of a factorial mating design. Forty-two full-sib families utilizing seven female and six male parents were evaluated in each of two years in Motueka, New Zealand. In a single year, values within individual half-sib families ranged as widely as 25.3–79.4 μg·g-1 fruit for AA, 205–597 mg/100 g fruit for TPH, and 1.06–7.69 g for fruit weight. Analyses of variance for these three variates demonstrated significant parental source variation in both individual and combined year analyses. For AA and TPH, female parental effects accounted for ≈7 % to 19% of total variation, while male effects accounted for ≈6% to 8 %. A partially pigment deficient R. parvifolius L. derivative female parent accounted for some of these differences. Female x male parent interaction was not significant for AA and TPH and was marginally significant for fruit weight in combined year analysis. Year had a significant effect on the overall mean AA and TPH, but contributed less than genetic effects to the overall variation in all three traits. Interactions of year with genetic effects were not statistically significant for AA or TPH, indicating that between-year rank or scale changes among families were negligible. The largest proportion of variation was found within rather than among full-sib families. However, variation among plots within full-sib families accounted for 12% to 19% of total variation, indicating environmental differences accounted for some of the observed within-family variation in AA and TPH. Antioxidant activity and TPH were highly phenotypically correlated (r=0.93); their genetic correlation (r=0.59) implies that substantial additive genetic factors underlie the phenotypic correlation, but that nonadditive genetic or environmental influences are also important. Both AA and TPH were weakly negatively phenotypically correlated with fruit weight (r=-0.34 and -0.33, respectively), but the corresponding genetic correlations were close to zero. Thus, selection for both high AA or TPH and high fruit weight is possible. Narrow-sense heritability estimates based on variance components from combined year data were h² = 0.54, 0.48, and 0.77 for AA, TPH, and fruit weight, respectively. These estimates imply a rapid response to selection is possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]