Evolution of polymethoxy flavones during development of tangelo Nova fruits

The production of nobiletin, sinensetin, tangeretin, quercetogetin and hept amethoxyflavone by tangelo Nova fruits is described. The levels of these co mpounds were examined by high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectr ometry. The results suggest that the highest levels of the nobiletin, sinen setin and tangeretin are associated with young developing states in fruits, while quercetogetin and heptamethoxyflavone come into full production towa rds the end of the lineal phase of growth. A study of the distributions of these secondary metabolites revealed that they were only located in the pee l. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.