On higher nutritional and medical properties of a carotenoid-rich mutant pomelo (Citrus maxima (L.) Osbeck)

Red-fleshed pomelo (Citrus maxima (L.) Osbeck), a spontaneous bud mutant of Guanxi pomelo, attracts consumers because of its distinct flesh color, but the nutritional and medical properties as compared with its parental Guanxi pomelo are not known. This study analyzed and evaluated the conventional fruit quality indexes, composition and content of carotenoids, antioxidant activities, bile-acid-binding activity and potential anticancer effect of carotenoid-rich mutant pomelo and its parental Guanxi pomelo juice. The results showed that compared with Guanxi pomelo juice, red-fleshed pomelo juice contained more lycopene, beta-carotene, soluble protein, and soluble solid, and exhibited stronger 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH)-radical scavenging activity, reducing power activity and bile-acid-binding activity, as well as higher anti-proliferative activity in leukemia cells. Summarizing the results, it can be speculated that high amounts of lycopene and beta-carotene in the red-fleshed pomelo fruits might contribute to its higher antioxidant, hypolipidemic and anticancer capacity. Therefore, red-fleshed pomelo juice are potential natural resources for multitargeted pharmacological and oncological therapies; however, further experimental and clinical studies are required to exploit its internal mechanisms.