Determination of biochemical contents of some cherry and cocktail tomato lines

Tomato is one of the most produced vegetables worldwide, and breeding efforts related to tomatoes are continually evolving and responding to new demands. As established by numerous studies, tomatoes contain significant amounts of many beneficial compounds needed by the human body. In this study, both the relatively new colored tomatoes on the market and the widely consumed red tomatoes have been included. The mineral content, vitamin C, lycopene, ß-carotene levels, antioxidant capacities, and phenolic and flavonoid compound amounts of cocktail and cherry-type tomatoes, red, red-green zebra, yellow, and orange tomatoes grown under the same conditions have been determined. These compounds, which are beneficial in many ways for both human health and the development and adaptation abilities of plants, exhibit lower values of ascorbic acid (4.91-60.09 mg/100 g) in light-colored tomatoes while showing higher values in dark-colored tomatoes. Flavonoid compound amounts range from 4.42-35.40 mgC/100 g and are similarly higher in dark-colored tomatoes. This is also true for antioxidant capacities (0.28-0.71 mmolTE/100 g), while phenolic compound amounts (30.25-80.91 mgGAE/100 g) are found to be higher in cherry tomatoes, depending on size. Lycopene (0.31-18.6) and ß-carotene (0.75-6.29) levels can vary depending on color, and it has been determined that yellow-orange tomatoes are rich in ß-carotene. Based on these results, it is recommended to increase the consumption of these appealing, differently colored tomatoes and to enhance breeding efforts.