Effects of cutting and maturity on antioxidant activity of fresh-cut tomatoes

To investigate the changes in total antioxidant activity of fresh-cut tomato during storage, tomato fruits harvested at three different stages of maturity were cut into 7-mm thick slices and stored at 5°C. Intact (control) fruits were stored in the same conditions. The antioxidant activity was evaluated as the capacity to scavenge the radical ABTS.+ in both hydrophilic (HAA) and lipophilic (LAA) extracts. Cutting resulted in a decrease in the HAA compared to control fruits and did not influence significantly the LAA. Changes in LAA during storage were described by a simple exponential model developing towards an asymptotic end value. The HAA also decreased exponentially in the beginning of the storage time but increased again afterwards. The hydrophilic antioxidant activity was higher than the lipophilic antioxidant activity for all stages of maturity. The levels of HAA did not differ significantly due to ripening during storage while the LAA increased with ripening