Phenolics and Mineral Elements Composition in Underutilized Apple Varieties
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
see attached review
Comments for author File: 
Comments.pdf
Author Response
Answer: Thanks the Reviewer for the comments, as suggested all the changes have been done in the manuscript. As concern the comment Line 25: one of the keywords is already mentioned in the title; please look for an alternative, the keyword Mineral elements has been changed with Vitamin C.
Done Line 13: please change “height mineral elements” into “eight mineral elements”
Done Line 20: please change “compare” into “compared” and change “indicate the” into “indicate”
Done Line 23: please change “phyto-chemials” into “phytochemicals”
Done Line 25: one of the keywords is already mentioned in the title; please look for an alternative
Done Line 44: please change “shown” into “showed”
Done Line 45: please delete the comma after “like”
Done Line 47: please change “characteristics are linked” into “characteristics linked”
Done Line 64: please change “Trans-ferulic” into “trans-ferulic”
Done Line 77: please change “since its” into “due to its”
Done Line 94: please insert a comma after “(25 °C)”
Done Line 96: please change “extract,” into “extracts”
Done Line 109: please change “inhibition” into “scavenging”
Done Line 110: please change “Inhibition” into “Scavenging”
Done Line 116: please change “were add” into “were added”
Done Line 127: please change “A targeted” into “Targeted”
Done Line 170: please change “provide” into “provided”
Done Line 174: please change “the lower” into “the lowest”
Done Line 190: please change “concentration vary” into “concentrations varied”
Done Line 193: please change “the lower” into “the lowest”
Done Line 194: please change “present a lower values” into “presented a lower value”
Done Line 229: please change “deviation for concentration” into “deviations for concentrations”
Done Line 233: please change “Trans-ferulic” into “trans-Ferulic”
Done Line 239: please change “cultivar” into “cultivars”
Done Lines 241/242: please give all values without digit after decimal point
Done Line 246: please change “calculate” into “calculated”
Done Line 251: please delete the comma after “cultivars”
Done Line 256: please delete the comma after “particular”
Done Line 257: please insert a comma after “’Mora’”
Done Line 265: please change “Trans-ferulic” into “trans-Ferulic”
Done Line 277: please change “Consumer” into “Consumers”
Done Line 280: please change “confirm previously study” into “confirm a previous study”
Done Line 287: please change “concentration” into “concentrations”
Done Line 288: please change “identified” into “determined”
Done Line 290: please change “value” into “values”
Done Line 293: please change “variety” into “varieties”
Done Line 297: please change “poor on Na” into “poor in Na”
Done Line 301: please change “variety” into “varieties”
Done Line 303: please change “concentration” into “concentrations”
Done Line 313: please change “recommends no” into “recommends not”
Done Line 319: please change “variety” into “varieties”
Reviewer 2 Report
The manuscript entitled "It is easy to say apples: Phenolic and mineral element composition in underutilized apples varieties" is well structured and organized. The information is clearly presented and can be easily tracked. The manuscript may be published after a minor revision:
From my point of view, the title should be reworded. I don't see the point in "It's easy to say apples"
The key words I would recommend are different from those used in the title, for better visibility.
Correlate the results obtained for the Goden Delicios variety with the following manuscripts:
Assessment of Polyphenols, Chlorophylls, and Carotenoids during Developmental Phases of Three Apple Varieties; SHE. Mureşan, S. Muste, C.C. Mureşan, E. Mudura, A. Păucean, L. Stan, R.A. Vlaic, C.G. Cerbu, V.Mureşan, 2017, Romanian Biotechnological Letters 22 (3): 12546-12553,
Evaluation of Physical-Chemical Indexes, Sugars, Pigments and Phenolic Compounds of Fruits from Three Apple Varieties at the End of Storage Period, E. A Mureşan., S. Muste, A. Borşa, RA Vlaic, V. Mureşan, 2014, Bulletin UASVM Food Science and Technology 71 (1): 45-50,
Author Response
Reviewer #2
COMMENT #1. …From my point of view, the title should be reworded. I don't see the point in "It's easy to say apples".
Answer: Thanks the Reviewer for the comment, as suggested the Title has been modified: “Phenolics and mineral elements composition in underutilized apples varieties”
COMMENT #2. The key words I would recommend are different from those used in the title, for better visibility.
Answer: We agree with the recommendation of the Reviewer and the Keywords already present in the title have been changes such as Mineral elements has been changed with Vitamin C.
COMMENT #3. Correlate the results obtained for the Golden Delicious variety with the following manuscripts:
Assessment of Polyphenols, Chlorophylls, and Carotenoids during Developmental Phases of Three Apple Varieties; SHE. Mureşan, S. Muste, C.C. Mureşan, E. Mudura, A. Păucean, L. Stan, R.A. Vlaic, C.G. Cerbu, V. Mureşan, 2017, Romanian Biotechnological Letters 22 (3): 12546-12553.
Evaluation of Physical-Chemical Indexes, Sugars, Pigments and Phenolic Compounds of Fruits from Three Apple Varieties at the End of Storage Period, E. A Mureşan., S. Muste, A. Borşa, RA Vlaic, V. Mureşan, 2014, Bulletin UASVM Food Science and Technology 71 (1): 45-50.
Answer: Thanks the Reviewer for the comment, as suggested the manuscript “Evaluation of Physical-Chemical Indexes, Sugars, Pigments and Phenolic Compounds of Fruits from Three Apple Varieties at the End of Storage Period, E. A Mureşan., S. Muste, A. Borşa, RA Vlaic, V. Mureşan, 2014, Bulletin UASVM Food Science and Technology 71 (1): 45-50” has been introduced in the introduction section as references n. 9.
Reviewer 3 Report
Manuscript ID: horticulturae-1519716
Title: “It is easy to say apples: Phenolic and mineral element composi-2 tion in underutilized apples varieties”
General comments
In the present study, different underutilized apple cultivars were analyzed in order to determine antioxidant capacity, and phenolic components, vitamin C and minerals contents
The basic idea of the manuscript is good, and it could be of practical interest.
However, some aspects need to be revised.
Lines 55-61.- Only the identification of phenols and minerals appears in the objectives. What about antioxidant capacity and vitamin C?
Line 81.- How was fresh firmness measured?
Lines 88-98.- Put in the same epigraph “polyphenols extraction” and analysis
Standardize nomenclature. Change “ml” by “mL”, mg/L or mg L-1, mg/kg or mg kg-1,…
Antioxidant capacity, phenolic composition, vitamin C, … in apples depends not only on the genotype but also on the tissue evaluated (peel or pulp). In this work, apples were examined whole, with pulp and skin, and the proportion of each of the parts was not taken into account. Could they condition the results? What were the proportions of peel and pulp?
Environmental factors and agricultural practices also affect levels of bioactive compounds. Were agricultural practices the same in the Casentino area?
Put the material and methods, the results and the discussion in the same order
Why are there so many variations in the Fe content in the Mora sample?
I think that the high variability of the results should be further discussed
Author Response
Reviewer #3
COMMENT #1. Lines 55-61.- Only the identification of phenols and minerals appears in the objectives. What about antioxidant capacity and vitamin C?
Answer: Thanks the Reviewer for the comment, as indicated in the objectives of our manuscript we add the sentence at Line 61: “Moreover spectrophotometric assay were carried out for determine the antioxidant capacity and Vitamin C in apples”.
COMMENT #2. Line 81.- How was fresh firmness measured?
Answer: Flesh firmness was measured with a fruit penetrometer equipped with a cylindrical shaped measuring head, which exerts pressure on the fruit by pushing the hand. The apple skin has been removed thinly, in a 1.5–2 cm wide stripe. The head was forced into the apple flesh in 2 different points.
In the section 2.2 Apple fruits a new sentence related to fresh firmness has been introduced: The flesh firmness (N/cm2) was measured with a fruit penetrometer removing apple flesh and measuring in 2 different points of apple fruits harvested at commercial maturity.
COMMENT #3. Lines 88-98.-Put in the same epigraph “polyphenols extraction” and analysis
Answer: Polyphenols extraction and analysis have been place in the same section as suggested by Reviewer.
COMMENT #4. Standardize nomenclature. Change “ml” by “mL”, mg/L or mg L-1, mg/kg or mg kg-1,…
Answer: Thanks the Reviewer for the comment, a check of nomenclature format has been done.
COMMENT #5. Antioxidant capacity, phenolic composition, vitamin C, … in apples depends not only on the genotype but also on the tissue evaluated (peel or pulp). In this work, apples were examined whole, with pulp and skin, and the proportion of each of the parts was not taken into account. Could they condition the results? What were the proportions of peel and pulp?
Answer: Thanks the Reviewer for the comment. We agree with the consideration that peel or pulp could have different antioxidant capacity, phenolic composition, and vitamin C but considering that apples sample were picked homogenously (were divided into four sections along the vertical axis, the core and seeds were removed, and all the sections pooled together), we are confident that for all apple varieties studied the proportion between pulp and peel is equal. Moreover our idea was understand is nutraceutical difference in whole apples studied exist, without a specific characterization of the two part (peel and pulp).
COMMENT #6. Environmental factors and agricultural practices also affect levels of bioactive compounds. Were agricultural practices the same in the Casentino area?
Answer: All apples studied derived from Casentino area that is as small area of Tuscany with homogenous environmental conditions. All apple varieties are grafted on the same rootstock and the farmer adopt the same cultivation protocol for all the variety studies.
COMMENT #7. Put the material and methods, the results and the discussion in the same order
Answer: Following the Reviewer comment, we reorganised the manuscript as indicated.
COMMENT #8. Why are there so many variations in the Fe content in the Mora sample? I think that the high variability of the results should be further discussed.
Answer: Thanks the Reviewer for the comment. We agree with the consideration that Fe content in Mora is variable when compared to other samples. Mineral elements composition especially Fe frequently present high variability of results in relation to apples studied. Below we reported one example of paper published that report a SD more than 30% of the mean value:
- Todea D. et al. Not Bot Horti Agrobo, 2014, 42(2):523-529
https://www.notulaebotanicae.ro/index.php/nbha/article/view/9715/7762
- Comparative Contents of Dietary Fiber, Total Phenolics, and Minerals in Persimmons and Apples
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/jf000947k
For these reason we believe that our Fe concentration can be considered within the expected range of variability.
Round 2
Reviewer 3 Report
The majority of the comments have been emended in the revised manuscript. Thus, issues on the work, the presentation of results and the explanation of findings are better addressed.
The work is more suitable for publishing
