Anthocyanins – what the hell is it?

Anthocyanins​—what the hell is it?

Anthocyanidins, also known as anthocyanins, are water-soluble natural pigments that widely exist in plants in nature. Most of the main coloring substances in fruits, vegetables and flowers are related to it. Under the conditions of different pH values ​​in plant cell vacuoles, anthocyanins make petals show colorful colors. It is known that there are more than 20 kinds of anthocyanins, and there are 6 important ones in food, namely geranium pigments, cyanidin pigments, delphinium pigments, peony pigments, morning glory pigments and mallow pigments. The anthocyanins in the natural state exist in the form of glycosides, called anthocyanins, and there are very few free anthocyanins. Anthocyanins are mainly used in food coloring, and can also be used in dyes, medicines, cosmetics, etc.

Type

More than 250 kinds of anthocyanins are known to exist naturally in plants of 27 families and 73 genera. At present, there are 20 kinds of anthocyanins identified, and 6 kinds are common in plants, namely geranium pigment (Pg), cyanidin (Cy), delphinidin (Dp), paeoniflorin (Pn), morning glory Anthocyanins (Pt) and mallow pigments (Mv).

Primary source

Anthocyanins widely exist in flowering plants (angiosperms), and their content in plants varies greatly with different varieties, seasons, climates, and maturity. According to preliminary statistics: plants in 27 families and 73 genera contain anthocyanins, such as purple sweet potato, grape, blood orange, red cabbage, blueberry, eggplant, cherry, cranberry, strawberry, mulberry, hawthorn, morning glory There is a certain content in the tissues of plants such as flowers.

The earliest and most abundant anthocyanin is grape skin red pigment extracted from red grape pomace. It was listed in Italy in 1879. The pigment can be extracted from the waste of winery – grape pomace. Elderberries contain a large amount of anthocyanins, all of which are cyanidins, with a fresh weight of 200-1000 mg per 100 grams. In addition, anthocyanins also widely exist in food crops such as barley, sorghum, and legumes. Studies have found that grape seed and pine bark extracts have the highest anthocyanin content.

Application

Antioxidant and free radical scavenging

Anthocyanins belong to bioflavonoids, and the main physiologically active functions of flavonoids are free radical scavenging ability and antioxidant capacity. Research proves that anthocyanins are the most effective antioxidants found by humans today, and are also the most powerful free radical scavenger. The antioxidant properties of anthocyanins are 50 times higher than VE and 20 times higher than VC. The purple sweet potato anthocyanin products have scavenging and inhibitory effects on -OH, H2 O2, and other active oxygen, especially the scavenging ability on -OH is stronger than that of ascorbic acid, and the scavenging effect has a dose relationship with the concentration.

Anti-mutation function

The role of anthocyanins not only makes plants present colorful colors, but also has active molecules with health functions such as reducing enzyme activity and anti-mutation. Studies have shown that extracts with a certain concentration of anthocyanins can effectively prevent the occurrence of cancer at different stages, but the individual effects of anthocyanins are not certain, partly because they are separated from other stable components such as phenolic substances for bioassay, anthocyanins Easy to degrade. .

Application in food

With the development of science and technology, people pay more and more attention to the safety of food additives, and the development and utilization of natural additives has become the general trend of the development and use of additives. Anthocyanins can not only be used as nutritional enhancers in food, but also can be used as food preservatives instead of synthetic preservatives such as benzoic acid, and can be used as food coloring agents in ordinary beverages and foods, in line with people’s expectations of natural, safe, and safe food additives. General requirements for health.