Miracle fruit (Synsepalum dulcificum) is an understudied tropical fruit species with potential as a source of natural, non-caloric sweetener. Miracle fruit berries have been consumed in Africa for over 100 years. The fruit pulp contains a protein called miraculin, a natural, non-caloric sweetener, that changes the perception of sour foods and beverages to sweet. Demand for natural, non-caloric sweeteners like miraculin is increasing due to the growing number of people affected by chronic diseases associated with high sugar consumption. Miracle fruit could play a role in reducing sugar content in some food and beverage applications, but basic plant yield data and miraculin content in the fruit is generally lacking. To overcome these limitations, fruit yield and miraculin content were analyzed for individual plants from a commercial miracle fruit farm growing nine plant morphotypes. Miracle fruit plants in general followed synchronized flowering periods with six harvest peaks within a single year with the largest yields from May to July. Total average yield ranged from 0.06 to 3.44 kg/tree/year for individual plants. The highest yielding plant morphotype was ‘Imperial’ with 2.76 kg/tree/yr. Average fruit weight ranged from 1.22–1.54 g, and pulp thickness ranged from 0.21–0.31 cm. A simplified extraction and quantification method was used to quantify miraculin from fruits. Miraculin content ranged from 0.07 for a ‘Holly’ morphotype to 1.30 mg/g of juice for a ‘Flame’ morphotype as measured by HPLC using recombinant miraculin as a protein standard. Overall, this study identified variation in both yield and miraculin content across sixty-six mature miracle fruit plants. These results will be useful for selecting superior plant types and provide foundational information supporting a new industry growing the natural, non-caloric sweetener miraculin.

中文翻译：

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九种神奇果实（Synsepalum Dulcificum）形态型的产量和奇迹素含量

奇迹果 (Synsepalum dulcificum) 是一种未被充分研究的热带水果品种，具有作为天然无热量甜味剂来源的潜力。奇迹果实浆果在非洲已经有 100 多年的历史了。果肉含有一种叫做奇迹素的蛋白质，一种天然的、无热量的甜味剂，可以将酸味食物和饮料的感觉转变为甜味。由于越来越多的人受到与高糖消费相关的慢性疾病的影响，因此对像奇迹素这样的天然无热量甜味剂的需求正在增加。奇迹果实在某些食品和饮料应用中可以起到降低糖含量的作用，但通常缺乏基本的植物产量数据和果实中的奇迹素含量。为了克服这些限制，对来自种植九种植物形态型的商业奇迹果农场的单株植物的果实产量和奇迹素含量进行了分析。奇迹果树一般花期同步，一年内有六个收获高峰，5-7月产量最大。单个植物的总平均产量为 0.06 至 3.44 公斤/树/年。产量最高的植物形态类型是“帝国”，为 2.76 公斤/树/年。平均单果重范围为 1.22-1.54 克，果肉厚度范围为 0.21-0.31 厘米。一种简化的提取和定量方法用于定量水果中的奇迹素。使用重组奇迹蛋白作为蛋白质标准，通过 HPLC 测量，奇迹素含量范围从 0.07 的“冬青”形态型到 1.30 毫克/克果汁的“火焰”形态型。全面的，这项研究确定了 66 株成熟的神奇果实植物的产量和奇迹素含量的变化。这些结果将有助于选择优良的植物类型，并提供基础信息，支持发展天然、无热量甜味剂奇迹的新产业。