Aronia Melanocarpa， also known as wild Chokeberry or Aronia berry, belongs to the Rosaceae family and is native to North America, Europe, and other regions. It was introduced to China in the 1990s and now has the largest planting base for black fruit catalpa in Northeast China. It is a precious economic tree species that combines medicinal, edible, and ecological values. The large amount of nutrients and extracted active substances in the fruit of the black fruit gland ribbed Chinese catalpa have strong antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, anti-fatigue, anti-aging, and beauty effects. It can be used in various food processing and drug development, has high nutritional and medicinal value, and has been widely favored by the pharmaceutical and food processing industries.

Aronia berry’s main nutritional components

The nutritional components of Aronia berry include carotenoids, tannic acid, pectin, organic acids, protein, L-ascorbic acid, pectin, quercetin, flavonol glucoside, chlorogenic acid, triterpenoid vitamin E, folate, phospholipids, phospholipids, carbohydrates, iodine, potassium, calcium, molybdenum, manganese, copper, boron, iron, zinc, magnesium, and dietary fiber.

Aronia berry’s functional components

Aronia berry has the highest content of flavonoids (fresh fruit content up to 0.25%~0.35%), anthocyanins, and polyphenols among known plants, surpassing blueberries and others, and also has a high content of polysaccharides. In addition, the fruit also contains various other active substances with high medicinal and edible value, known as the “anti-cancer agent” of nature. The fruit can be used to process drugs such as anti-cancer, prevention and treatment of diabetes and cardiovascular disease, anti-fatigue, anti-aging, etc., and also can be used to process health care or functional food such as wine, baked food, beverage, jam, canned fruit, preserved fruit, food colorants, etc.

Polyphenol

Researchers compared Aronia berry with several other berries, including blackberries, raspberries, blackcurrants, and red currants, and found that the total phenolic content was several times higher than other berries. Other studies have shown that the content of total phenols, anthocyanins, phenolic acids, and other substances in black fruited Chinese catalpa is higher than that in blueberries; The polyphenolic substances in the black fruit gland ribbed flower tree are generally composed of polymeric polyphenols and monomeric polyphenols, with anthocyanins accounting for 43.2% to 55.6% of total phenols. The polyphenols accumulated in the fruit of the black fruit gland ribbed Chinese catalpa are mainly synthesized from anthocyanins and their glycosides. In addition, the polyphenols in black fruited Chinese catalpa also contain functional components such as caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, chlorogenic acid, and catechins.

Anthocyanin

Aronia berry has a high content of anthocyanins, accounting for about 25% of the total phenolic content. The main substances are 3-O-arabinoside (27.5%), 3-O-glucoside (1.3%), 3-O-xyloside (2.3%), and 3-O-galactoside (68.9%). Among them, anthocyanins are mainly present in the form of 3-O-galactoside.

Procyanidin

Proanthocyanins exist on the upper epidermis of the fruit peel and are formed by the combination of different amounts of catechins and epicatechin particles. They are the main substances that cause astringency and coloration in black fruits, accounting for 66% of the total phenolic content. Anthocyanins have strong antioxidant capacity and can effectively reduce the risk of diseases such as cancer, blood clotting, and cardiovascular disease by controlling the reaction of free radicals.

Other bioactive ingredients

Aronia berry flavonoids have anti fatigue properties and can maintain the health of the heart and urinary system. Foreign scholars have discovered ursolic acid from the black fruit gland rib fruit. The seed oil of the black fruit gland ribbed hawthorn also contains sterols, accounting for 0.12% of the total sterols. The main components are brassinosteroids, β – sitosterols, δ – oat sterols, 9 types of carrot hydrocarbons, hexaoxacetyl sorbitol, tetraoxacetyl – β – D-glucopyranosyl formate, pentaoxacetyl glucopyranosyl, pentaoxacetyl amygdalin, tetraoxacetyl quercetin, wild cherry blossom glycosides, arbutin, (-) – epicatechin, n-butyl – α – D-fructofuranoside, n-butyl – β – D-fructofuranoside, folic acid, pectin, and riboflavin.