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The cultivation of sweet chestnuts in Slovakia has a century-year-old tradition. However, just a few research publications provide more comprehensive information about the chestnuts' chemical composition of different varieties in individual growing areas. Sweet chestnuts contain various nutrients, of which carbohydrates are very important for assessing their commercial quality. Simple carbohydrates are mainly represented by glucose, fructose, sucrose, and maltose. The content of glucose was 0.178–3.152, fructose 0.271–3.170, sucrose 9.355–29.890, and maltose 0.171–1.584 g/100 g DW in chestnut samples from 27 sampling points, which are part of Slovakia's four largest growing areas of sweet chestnuts. Carbohydrate contents were determined by the high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC-RI) method. There are statistically proven differences in the content of individual carbohydrates depending on the sampling area of chestnuts. Potassium has a significant presence in sweet chestnuts as a mineral substance. Its content was determined in the 377–789 mg/100 g DW range. The content of sodium (calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus) was 0.65–6.90 (26.9–103, 58.7–101, and 96.5–179) mg/100 g DW. The contents of mineral substances were determined by the AAS method. The content of carbohydrates and mineral substances is mainly influenced by variety and age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sweet chestnuts are highly regarded and widely consumed throughout Europe because of their nutritional composition and health benefits, which have become important in the human diet, for example, in gluten-free diets. This study aims to assess the impact of heat treatment using the UV-VIS spectrophotometry methods. TPC values (mg GAE/g DW - dried weight) ranged from 1.935 to 6.165 (raw flesh), 1.676 to 4.342 (boiled samples), 1.580 to 3.091 (roasted samples), 1.193 to 8.272 (microwaved samples), and 2.556 to 5.655 (steamed samples). The DPPH values (μmol TE/g DW) for raw flesh ranged from 4.232 to 5.094, for boiled samples from 3.396 to 5.147, for roasted samples from 3.185 to 4.726, for microwaved samples from 2.798 to 5.816, and for steamed samples from 4.441 to 5.171. The FRAP antioxidant activity (μmol TE/g DW) values ranged from 10.971 to 207.11 (raw flesh), 4.058 to 134.651 (boiled samples), 11.954 to 132.476 (roasted samples), 7.795 to 179.129 (microwaved samples), and 17.468 to 367.957 (steamed samples). Among the methods used, steaming and microwaving had the greatest impact on total polyphenol content and antioxidant activity (DPPH, FRAP). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Horehronie region belongs to the oldest industrial areas in Slovakia. It is contaminated by residual acid tar dumps from times of Petrochema Dubová factory production since 1964. In the presented study, heavy metals (Cu, Cd, Ni, Zn, Pb) were determined in soils and forest fruits (Vaccinium myrtillus L., Vaccinium vitis-idaea L., Fragaria vesca L., Rosa canina L., Rubus idaeus L.) collected over two years from five locations in the Horehronie using Flame AAS method (Zn, Cu, Ni) and Graphite Furnace AAS method (Cd, Pb). The cadmium content, which was higher than its limit value in all analysed soils, poses the biggest threat. We determined more than 20 times the limit value for cadmium in the sample Veľká Smrekovica (9.17 mg/kg). The contamination factor (Cf) values and the geoaccumulation index (Igeo) indicate that this hazardous metal is involved in soil contamination to a large extent. The highest values of the degree of contamination (Cdeg) and the pollution load index (PLI) were determined in samples from the Ždiarska dolina and the Veľká Smrekovica. The contents of nickel and zinc were higher than the limit values only in the 1st sampling year in the Ždiarska dolina sample (46.30 mg/kg; 138.30 mg/kg). The results showed that soil monitoring and remediation of old environmental burdens are important in the territory of the Horehronie region. The highest permissible amounts for cadmium were exceeded in all types of forest fruits (0.03-0.18 mg/kg FW). The contents of nickel and lead were exceeded only in the sample of rosehips (Rosa canina). The contents of zinc and copper were lower than the permissible amounts in all samples. The estimated daily intake (EDI) was lower than the acceptable daily intake of all heavy metals. The bioaccumulation factor (BAF), total hazardous quotient and hazard index of the analysed samples was < 1, which means that the consumption of forest fruits from the Horehronie does not pose a health risk for the consumer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]