Analysis of Sensory, Morphological and Biochemical Characteristics in Fruits of Different Red-Fleshed Pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus) Accessions

In recent years, many tropical fruits including dragon fruit (pitaya) have been introduced in Turkiye. Tropical fruits, which grow mostly in the hottest subtropical climates of Turkiye such as Antalya province and Alanya-Gazipasa districts, have attained an important economic value in recent years. In this study, the sensory, morphological and biochemical contents in fruit flesh of 13 red-fleshed dragon (pitaya) accessions (Hylocereus polyrhizus) grown in Alanya district were determined. The accessions were subjected to sensory, morphological (flesh color as L, chroma and hue) and biochemical (organic acids, specific sugars, phenolic spectrum, vitamin C, dietary fiber and antioxidant activity) analysis. The data obtained showed that great variability was evident for most of the biochemical parameters among the 13 dragon accessions. The accessions exhibited vitamin C and dietary fiber of 2.55-4.02 mg per 100 g fresh weight base and 3.55-4.11%, respectively. The main organic acids and sugars were malic acid and glucose for all 13 accessions. Among the phenolic compounds, quercetin was found to be dominant and varied from 3.64 to 4.18 mg per 100 g FW. Results indicated high sensory and morphological as well as rich biochemical content of 13 pitaya accessions grown in subtropical conditions of the Mediterranean region of Turkiye.