By Dr. Mark Ehlenfeldt
ESI Special Topics,
December 2002
Citing URL - http://www.esi-topics.com/fbp/comments/december02-MarkEhlenfeldt.html
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Dr. Mark Ehlenfeldt
answers a
few questions about this month's fast breaking paper in
the field of Agricultural Sciences.
From
•>>December 2002
Field: Agricultural Sciences
Article Title: "Oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) and phenolic and anthocyanin concentrations in fruit and leaf tissues of highbus blueberry"
Authors: Ehlenfeldt,
MK;Prior, RL
Journal: J AGR FOOD CHEM
Volume: 49
Page: 2222-2227
Year: MAY 2001
* USDA ARS, Arkansas Childrens Nutr Res Ctr, Little Rock, AR 72202 USA.
* USDA ARS, Marucci Ctr Blueberry & Cranberry Res &
Extens, Chatsworth, NJ 08019 USA.
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 Why
do you think your paper is highly cited?
Antioxidants, nutriceuticals, and blueberries are all hot
topics right now. Blueberries particularly have been shown to
prevent and even reverse age-related declines in animal models (J.
Neurosci. 19[18]: 8114-8121). My co-author, Dr. Ronald
Prior, is recognized as one of the leaders in this area of
study.
See
accompanying chart
Does
it describe a new discovery or a new methodology that's useful to
others?
This paper is primarily an advance in information over
earlier studies that looked at non-specific or more limited
genotypes. This paper looked at a wide range of genotypes, it
looked at both leaf and fruit tissue, and made some preliminary
evaluations regarding inheritance of antioxidant production.
What
were some of the circumstances that led you to do this research?
Dr. Prior and I had collaborated on an earlier study looking
at the antioxidant potential of blueberries. As a plant breeder,
I had a natural interest in knowing more about specific
genotypes that could be used in breeding and developing new
cultivars, and in knowing whether we could use foliar evaluation
to select for high antioxidant levels in fruit.
Could
you summarize the significance of your paper in layman's terms?
We now know that there’s a wide range in the production of
antioxidants among different blueberry cultivars. Leaf and fruit
levels are not correlated so we cannot use early foliar
evaluation as an option in breeding (and blueberries take 2-3
years to produce fruit). Early indications are that inheritance
is additive, so recovering offspring with good antioxidant
production levels will probably be relatively easy.
Dr. Mark Ehlenfeldt
Research Geneticist
USDA-ARS
Fruit Laboratory
Beltsville, Maryland, USA
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ESI Special
Topics, December 2002
Citing URL - http://www.esi-topics.com/fbp/comments/december02-MarkEhlenfeldt.html
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