Anca Babes

Carotenoids, total polyphenols and antioxidant activity of grapes ( Vitis vinifera ) cultivated in organic and conventional systems

BackgroundOrganic agriculture involve plants which are cultivated without using synthetic pesticides, herbicides or fertilizers and promotes biodiversity, biological cycles and improve the product quality. The carotenoids, total polyphenols and the antioxidant activity from skins of some wine and table grapes cultivated in organic and conventional agriculture were studied.ResultsThe main carotenoids identified using high performance liquid chromatography were lutein and ß-carotene. Muscat Ottonel variety has the highest ß-carotene concentration 504.9 μg/kg for organic and 593.2 μg/kg for conventional grapes. For the organic farming, the total polyphenols content were in the range of 163.23 – 1341.37 mg GAE/kg fresh weight (FW) and 148.47 – 1231.38 mg GAE/kg FW for the conventional grapes. The highest ORAC values were obtained for blue-black variety Napoca in both farming system (43.5 ± 0.95 μmol TE/g organic; 40.4 ± 0.5 μmol TE/g conventional) and lowest for Aromat de Iaşi (16.8 ± 0.6 μmol TE/g organic; 14.7 ± 1.6 μmol TE/g conventional). Napoca variety showed also the highest antioxidant activity measured by DPPH method in both cultivated system.ConclusionNine grape varieties cultivated in organic and conventional systems were compared regarding the carotenoids, total polyphenols and antioxidant activity. The white grape varieties have a higher carotenoids content compared with the blue-black cultivars while the blue-black varieties contain higher TPC and exhibit higher antioxidant activity (except for Muscat Hamburg-ORAC). Vitis vinifera grape skins originating from wine or table grape varieties can be used as a potential source of natural antioxidants.

Studies on agro-biological attributes of table varieties grown in the Tarnave vineyard

The vine characteristics serve for a standardization and description of grapevine varieties. The presentation comprises characteristics distinguishing for the table grape varieties, but also indicates the agronomic aptitudes of table grape varieties, in Tarnave vineyard. Table grape varieties studied (Codreanca, IstriA£a, Somesan, Transilvania, CetAƒA£uia, Splendid, Victoria, Timpuriu de Pietroasa) are grown in viticultural center Blaj.

Evaluation of the Climate Changes in Tarnave and Murfatlar Vineyards

This study is a characterization of the evolution of the climatic and phisiological parameters from 1999 – 2008. Its purpose is to evaluate the climatic changes that can influence the growth and development of grape-vine in renowned vineyards, such as the vineyards Tarnave and Murfatlar. The evaluation was made using climatic data provided by the meteorological stations of the two research units. The physiological observations and physic-chemical analysis were made on grape varieties specific for the viticultural area that was studied. The results obtained for the climatic parameters in the studied areas have been correlated to the multiannual average, as well as to the vegetation phenophases and the quantity and quality of grapes. The climatic changes from the studied areas have a significant influence on both the growth and fructification of the grapevine as well as on the grape yield quality. In the last 10 years in the vineyards and Tarnava and Murfatlar were recorded light of climate changes in both temperature and daily average, as well as on the quantity and distribution of rainfall. The average temperature Blaj 0,00 2,00 4,00 6,00 8,00 10,00 12,00 14,00 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Year average, 1999 2008 Multiyear average Fig. 1. Diagram of the average temperature from Tarnave vineyard REFERENCES 1. Alexandrescu, I. C., M. Oslobeanu, L. Jianu and P. Pituc (1994). Mica enciclopedie de viticulture. Ed. Glasul Bucovinei, Iasi. 2. Dejeu, L. (2004). Viticultura practica. Ed. Ceres, Bucuresti.