Citrus: Molecular Phylogeny, Antioxidant Properties and Medicinal Uses

This book gathers the information about the molecular phylogeny, antioxidant compounds and health benefits of citrus. It covers the biological aspects of citrus production and its ecological journey emphasizing on functional traits related to its nutritional and photosynthetic apparatus. The already published data has been reviewed and re-interpreted with an added ecological point of view that, perhaps, is not discussed by most of the textbooks or journals.
The enzymes involved in the biosynthetic pathways of citrus bioactive compounds to modulate a variety of plant characteristics are debated. The information about the genetic architecture of citrus genome and the genes specifically involved in fruit development, in particular, related to antioxidant accumulation, are extensively discussed, which would help the citrus breeders to know precise information on the most important genes useful to develop improved cultivars.
The phytophenolic composition of citrus fruits with emphasis on their flavonoid and carotenoid content and their related antioxidative potency as well as the prophylactic potential of citrus has been highlighted in this book. In the last few years, there has been great interest in improving and preserving the nutritional and health related quality of fresh fruits. In this context, the effects of different commonly applied treatments during the postharvest handling of citrus fruits, e.g., cold storage and degreening, on antioxidant compounds have been examined in one of the achapter in this volume.
The medicinal value and health promoting effects of citrus fruits have mainly been related to their antioxidant compounds. The medicinal properties of different citrus compounds and extracts have been discussed including the effect of citrus amines on the human adipocytes and in turn on the obesity. Finally, the use of citrus essential oil and the different polymer blends made from its components as the medicinal agents has also been reviewed extensively in this book.