FRUIT AND SEEDS

Fruit Formation and Seed Dispersal

Fruit Formation and Seed Dispersal

Introduction

Fruits are the most attractive food for its diversity of colors and shapes. Foods contain multiple nutrients and natural substances that are highly beneficial to health. Fruits survive in the open environment and face all kinds of weather conditions and attacks. Protective substances and natural antioxidants enable the fruit to survive in environmental circumstances. These are the same substances that protect the health of people when consuming food.  Vitamins and nutrients present in the supports a healthy life and individual development. This paper explores the factors that contribute to flavor formation of fruit with respect to taste, ripening of fruit and its impact on seed dispersal, role of human beings in seed dispersal process by consuming grains and fruits, and metabolism process of seed.

Flavor Formation in Fruits

The content of carbohydrates (sugars) in fruits varies greatly from 8.5 to 12 g per 100 g in the fruit at maturity, depending on the variety of fruit (Paul, 2008). The carbohydrate content in fruits varies from 20% to 30%, the process of photosynthesis leads to forming sugars, complex structural components polysaccharides, energy reserves such as starch and specific compounds such as nucleic acids and vitamins such as riboflavin (Starr, 2010). The amounts of the different constituents vary according to the metabolic activity of plants. Sweet taste of fruit is due to presence of complex sugar molecules, such as lactose, fructose, sucrose, and glucose. Sweet taste form mainly by sucrose (40% of total carbohydrates) as well as fructose and glucose (each 30% of total) (Paul, 2008); these carbohydrates are easily used by the body to provide quick energy.

Organic acids are key metabolic components for flavor and taste formation, especially in fruits. Fruits generally contain a small proportion of free acids found mostly in the form of salts, making them less acidic fruits and ...