S24 - Session P2 - Lycopene from orange heirloom tomatoes (`Moonglow´) reduces bone turnover in a rat model of osteoporosis

Authors: Umani Walallawita *, Frances Wolber, Ayelet Ziv-Gal, Marlena Kruger, Julian Heyes

Mangoes (Mangifera indica L.) have flesh colour ranging from creamy-yellow to deep-orange. Flesh colour is often cultivar-specific, with consumer preference for a specific cultivar, and its associated flesh colour, tending to vary between geographic region and culture. One of the principal flesh pigments in mango is beta-carotene, an orange carotenoid compound. Beta-carotene is also a major dietary precursor to Vitamin A (retinol), deficiency of which is widespread in many developing countries, and associated with symptoms such as night blindness, and, in severe cases, stunting of growth. At this stage, the relationship between beta-carotene concentration and mango flesh colour has not been fully established. The current study reports the impact of beta-carotene concentration, as well as the impact of other carotenoid compounds present in the flesh of 20 mango varieties, on the final flesh colour of mango fruit. This data clarifies if flesh colour can be accurately used as a predictive tool to determine the beta-carotene concentration within existing mango cultivars, and if orange cultivars are actually better sources of beta-carotene.