Variation of anthocyanin and carotenoid contents and associated antioxidant values in potato breeding lines

A breeding effort designed to increase the antioxidant level of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) by means of high concentrations of anthocyanins and/or carotenoids provided selected materials for analysis. Extraction methods suitable for isolating both hydrophilic and lipophilic compounds were used and measurements of total anthocyanin and total carotenoid were made. Two methods of measurement of oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) adapted to hydrophilic and lipophilic compounds were applied. Total anthocyanin values varied between 9.5 and 38 mg per 100 g fresh weight (FW). The hydrophilic fraction ORAC measurements among anthocyanin-rich clones varied between 250 and 1420 mu mol Trolox equivalents per 100 g FW. These two variables were significantly correlated, r = 0.73, and with significant positive slope in linear regression. Measurement of total carotenoids revealed differing degrees of yellowness covered a range of total carotenoid extending from 35 to 795 jig per 100 g FW. Dark yellow cultivars had roughly 10 times more total carotenoid than white-flesh cultivars. The lipophilic fraction ORAC values ranged from 4.6 to 15.3 nmoles alpha-tocopherol equivalents per 100 g FW. Total carotenoid was correlated with the lipophilic ORAC values, r = 0.77, and also had a statistically significant positive regression coefficient. Clones with red and yellow pigments visible in the flesh had anthocyanins and carotenoids in elevated levels and ORAC contributions from both fractions. The introgression of high levels of carotenoid from germplasm directly extracted from the Papa Amarilla (yellow potato) category of cultivars of South America into long-day adapted North American materials is presented here. Although anthocyanins and carotenoids are major contributors to antioxidant activity, other constituents of potato flesh likely play significant roles in total antioxidant values.