Volume 18(3), 133- 135, 2014 JOURNAL of Horticulture, Forestry and Biotechnology www.journal-hfb.usab-tm.ro 133 Chemical characterisation of white (Morus alba), and black (Morus nigra) mulberry fruits Popescu (Pintilie) G. Sofia 1 , Velciov Ariana-Bianca 1 , Costescu Corina 1 , Gogoasa I. 1 , Gravila Corina 2 , Petolescu Cerasela 3 1 Banat’s University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine “King Michael I of Romania” Timisoara, 1 Faculty of Food Processing Technology, 2 Faculty of Animal Science and Biotechnology, Faculty of Horticulture and Forestry, , 300645 Timisoara, Roumania, *Corresponding author. Email: sofiapopescu@yahoo.com Abstract In the present study, 2 types of mulberry (white (Morus alba L.) and black (Morus nigra L.)) fruits from local areas were investigated for fat content, total antioxidant capacity and polyphenols content. Total antioxidant capacity was analyzed using CUPRAC method and total polyphenols content by Folin Ciocalteu method. The highest total phenolic contents were observed in black mulberry and M. alba had the highest total fat content. Key words mulberry species, fat content; total polyphenols, antioxidant capacities, CUPRAC method The mulberry belongs to the genus Morus of the family Moraceae. Mulberry was domesticated thousands of years ago and adapted to a wide area and they can grow in a wide range of climatic, topographical and soil conditions. . This Morus genus has 24 species with one subspecies, and 100 varieties are known to date (Ercisli and Orhan, 2007). In most European countries, mulberries are grown for fruit production rather than foliage (Ercisli, 2004; Gerasopoulos and Stavroulakis, 1997). In India and China, mulberry is used for its foliage, to feed the silkworm (Bombyx mori L.) and mulberry breeding has focused on enhancing foliage production (Vijayan et al., 1997). Mulberry is valued species used for landscaping, gardening in urban conditions, street shade and city embellishment, because it withstands high levels of air pollution. Berry fruits are important sources of health benefits compounds. Mulberry fruit are reach in many bioactive components such as alkaloids (Asano et al., 2001), carotenoids and flavonoids (Hassimotto et al., 2007 ), vitamins, fats (mainly linoleic acid, palmitic acid, oleic acid), sugars (glucose and fructose) and minerals (Ercisli and Orhan, 2007). The bioactivity of mulberry fruits, such as antioxidant content (Yang et al., 2010), hypolipidemic effect (Liu et al., 2009), and macrophage activating effect (Kim et al., 2013), were linked to the presence of phenolics in mulberry fruit. The wild fruit species have an excellent quality and high nutritive value, with wide range of use in the human diet, medicine and in industrial processing (Bošnjakovic´ et al., 2012). The antioxidant compounds (e.g. anthocyanins, water-soluble pigments) present in berry fruits have potential effects in reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases and cancers via their antioxidant, antiinflammatory, antimetastasis and chemoprotective properties (Huang, Shih, Chang, Hung & Wang, 2008; Lazze et al., 2004). The plant has been used medicinally in Romania. Mulberry fruits can be used as a remedy for dysentery, and as a laxative, odontalgic, anthelmintic, expectorant, hypoglycaemic and emetic. Fruit contains essential fatty acids that humans cannot synthesise, and must be obtained through diet (Ercisli and Orhan, 2007). Thus the phytochemical composition of mulberry fruits remains an interesting and useful task, particularly in order to find new promising sources of natural antioxidants. The aim of this study is to compare white and black mulberry species, in terms of chemical composition. Materials and Methods Chemicals and materials: All chemicals and reagents were analytical grade or purest quality purchased from Sigma, Merck, Aldrich and Fluka, bidistilled water was used. Absorption determination for CUPRAC and total polyphenols content was made using SPECORD 205 spectrophotometer by Analytik Jena. Samples preparation: Mulberry fruits were harvested from selected Mouros nigra (DN1, DN2, DN3, DN4) and Mouros alba (DA1, DA2, DA3) genotypes sample from Timisoara in 2012. Each sample includes 3 trees of the same age. The samples are noted white- mulberry All berries were picked at the ripe stage. The mulberries were selected according to uniformity of shape and colour. The fruits were then stored in polyethylene bags at 20 0 C (up to 1 month) until analysis. In the present study, 2 type mulberry fruit