LIGHT AND THE CAROTINOID CONTENT OF CERTAIN FRUITS AND VEGETABLES

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Abstract
The fruits of peaches, apricots, nectarines and tomatoes were grown in complete darkness from the blossom stage to fruiting and their carotinoid content compared with those fruits grown in normal light. Yellow-fleshed El-berta peaches developed higher carotinoid content when grown in the absence of light whereas the opposite was true with Humboldt nectarines and Royal apricots. White-fleshed peaches and nectarines contained insufficient pigment for measurement. Fruits grown in total darkness oxidize less rapidly than those grown in light. No chlorophyll developed in tomato fruits grown in total darkness although the normal red color fully developed. Fruits of Clark''s Albino and Ruby Gold tomatoes, with pale yellow and deep yellow flesh, respectively, increase in carotinoid content when grown in the dark, whereas red-fleshed varieties decreased in carotinoid content under the same conditions. The pH of fruit grown in the dark generally is higher than that in the light. A new method is described for the extraction of the caro-tinoid pigments from fresh tissue using pyridene as a solvent.