Fruit Quality and Primary and Secondary Metabolites Content in Eight Varieties of Blood Oranges
, Juan José Martínez-Nicolás 2, Amparo Melián-Navarro 3, Antonio Ruíz-Canales 3, Alberto Continella 4 and Pilar Legua 2,*Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
In this manuscript, the main morphological parameters and primary and secondary metabolites of 8 blood orange varieties grafted on large-leaved citrus were studied. Some results were obtained through analysis. However, there are some issues need to be completed.
1) The abstract was not informative, There are no results on the morphological parameters of blood orange.
2) Line 111 says that the 25 samples are divided into six combinations, some of which are four and some of which are five. Why not remove one to ensure that each combination is four
3) The sample photo of Figure 1 is not good enough. Some parts are dark and some parts are not clear.
4) As shown in Figure 1, there are obvious differences in the size of some species samples and small differences among individuals. Is this the case with the samples used for the determination of other indicators?
5) Does the content of phenolic substances change over time? Because you are measuring frozen samples.
6) Whether it is better to evaluate the quality of fruit juice to calculate the ratio of sugar to acid using total sugar and total acid.
7) There are punctuation errors in some parts.
8) The language in some parts of the manuscript could be condensed.
Author Response
REVIEW #1
In this manuscript, the main morphological parameters and primary and secondary
metabolites of 8 blood orange varieties grafted on large-leaved citrus were studied. Some
results were obtained through analysis. However, there are some issues need to be
completed.
1) The abstract was not informative, There are no results on the morphological parameters
of blood orange.
It has been added as suggested.
2) Line 111 says that the 25 samples are divided into six combinations, some of which are
four and some of which are five. Why not remove one to ensure that each combination is four
It has been done as suggested.
3) The sample photo of Figure 1 is not good enough. Some parts are dark and some parts
are not clear.
It has been done as suggested.
4) As shown in Figure 1, there are obvious differences in the size of some species samples
and small differences among individuals. Is this the case with the samples used for the
determination of other indicators?
The samples shown in Figure 1 are representative of the 25 fruits selected from the tree for each variety of blood orange. Therefore, to other indicators also there are small differences between fruits of the same variety and greater differences between different varieties.
5) Does the content of phenolic substances change over time? Because you are measuring
frozen samples.
After the destructive sampling of the fruit and obtaining the juice, it was frozen until the moment of sampling (in which it was left thawing at 4°C) since it was not known exactly if it would be days or months until the phenolic compounds could be analysed and determined. The reason why it was decided to freeze the juice was due to the probable action of oxidoreductase enzymes such as polyphenol oxidase or peroxidase that produce the oxidation and degradation of phenolic compounds. In addition, the metabolism of the microorganisms present in the juice could also affect the content of phenolic compounds.
6) Whether it is better to evaluate the quality of fruit juice to calculate the ratio of sugar to
acid using total sugar and total acid.
TSS/TA or IM was decided as it is the most used and regulated method to estimate the level of maturity of citrus fruits. In fact, the European Commission (EC) determined the maturity requirements of orange fruits and, among these requirements, the minimum sugar/acid ratio for marketing is 6.5. In addition, TSS includes more than 80% of the sugars and the TA of our study was mainly citric acid.
7) There are punctuation errors in some parts.
It has been done as suggested.
8) The language in some parts of the manuscript could be condensed.
It has been done as suggested.
Reviewer 2 Report
1. Revise the abstract, give some values of the observations
2. In the abstract try to mention What is the best orange out of studied
3. Divide the introduction into paragraphs according to the ideas.
4. Try to give a strong gap and significance of the study
5. Try to give the soil conditions of the farm where Oranges are collected
6. What is the maturity stage of the oranges used in this study?
7. Need to give proper reference for the materials and methods, for instance, section 2.2
8. In the case of data presentation in the tables, better use SD values also.
9. There are a few spelling mistakes like "secondary Metabolites". Once, check the spelling
10. figure 2, why not give the axis name?
11. Discussion is good, however, can discuss a little wider and deeper by comparing with other fruits also
13. Conclusions can be condensed and be specific to the objectives
Author Response
REVIEW #2
Comments and Suggestions for Authors
- Revise the abstract, give some values of the observations
It has been added as suggested.
- In the abstract try to mention What is the best orange out of studied
It has been added as suggested.
- Divide the introduction into paragraphs according to the ideas.
It has been done as suggested.
- Try to give a strong gap and significance of the study
It has been done as suggested.
- Try to give the soil conditions of the farm where Oranges are collected
In section 2.1., the main soil and atmosphere parameters of the experimental farm in which the varieties were grown are described: This farm had an EC of 0.44 dS m−1 (20 °C), pH of 7.25, temperature of 12°C and relative humidity (RH) of 58% at harvest time.
- What is the maturity stage of the oranges used in this study?
The fruit was harvested manually at the physiological maturity stage that was determined by the MI whose value was greater than 6.5 in all varieties as established by the European Commission (EC).
- Need to give proper reference for the materials and methods, for instance, section 2.2
It has been done as suggested.
- In the case of data presentation in the tables, better use SD values also.
In the first instance, the tables were developed with the descriptive statistics: mean and standard error, together with analysis of variance (ANOVA) and a post-hoc study, HSD Tukey. However, it was decided to eliminate the standard error by not providing relevant information but a lot of noise and difficulty to observe the results. However, if necessary, the standard error or standard deviation tables can be added as supplementary material.
- There are a few spelling mistakes like “secondary Metabolites”. Once, check the spelling
It has been done as suggested.
- figure 2, why not give the axis name?
In Figure 2A a legend has been inserted for the easy identification of the varieties whose bar colour corresponds to that of the legend. In the first instance, the name of the varieties was placed under each bar graph but it was observed that it was more aesthetic and clearer to place a legend.
- Discussion is good, however, can discuss a little wider and deeper by comparing with other fruits also
The objective pursued by the discussion is to compare our results with other varieties of citrus, specifically white or blood oranges, so as to highlight their advantages in terms of human nutrition, but also with a view to their possible commercialization by the citrus industry of vital importance for the economy of certain Mediterranean regions such as the Southeast of Spain and Italy, Morocco or Turkey.
- Conclusions can be condensed and be specific to the objectives
It has been done as suggested.
Reviewer 3 Report
The research is of unconditional and significant interest. The introduction well justifies the need for research. The design of the study is well structured and logical. The reliability of the results is confirmed by statistical methods of data analysis. The discussion reflects the main achievements of the authors and their place in world science. The conclusion corresponds to the goal. In conclusion, it is desirable to add information about where the results of the study can be used and what further directions of continuation of the study are possible.
Author Response
REVIEW #3
Comments and Suggestions for Authors:
The research is of unconditional and significant interest. The introduction well justifies the need for research. The design of the study is well structured and logical. The reliability of the results is confirmed by statistical methods of data analysis. The discussion reflects the main achievements of the authors and their place in world science. The conclusion corresponds to the goal. In conclusion, it is desirable to add information about where the results of the study can be used and what further directions of continuation of the study are possible.
It has been added as suggested. It can be seen at the end of the conclusions section.
Author Response File: 
Author Response.docx
