Free amino acid profile in Malus domestica cv Annurca apples from the Campania region and other Italian vegetables

The apple Malus domestica cv Annurca is a variety from the Campania Region (in Southern Italy), known for its high quality, recognized with the "Protected Geographical Indication" (PGI) trademark. Differences in cultivation area could help to guarantee the geographic origin of this product. Free amino acids in Annurca apples cultivated in the Campania Region were analyzed using amino acid analyzer with post-column ninhydrin derivatization procedure, a chemometric approach. The main free amino acids present in samples from Annurca apples were asparagine (>70 mg/100 g), aspartic acid, glutammic acid and O-phosphoserine (about 1-5 mg/100 g each). Other amino acids were detected in minor amounts (less than 1 mg/100 g). Subsequently, the cluster analysis obtained indicates that the Annurca apples from Presenzano, Pietravairano, Vitulazio and Valle di Maddaloni (little town of Campania region) may be possible by distinguish on the basis of their free amino acid profiles. The confidence of the cluster obtained for apples, has been tested considering the free amino acid profiles from other vegetable cultivars It is concluded that free amino acid profiles are good indicators of the geographic origin of Annurca apples and other vegetables, proposing a simple method compared with more tedious analyses, which could be transferred to other laboratories, making the acquisition of raw data easy (free amino acid profiles).