Workshop for secondary school students at the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Tecnhology

This 2-day Workshop for last grade secondary school students with high level of academic achievements has been organized by Dr. Maria J. Rodrigo (IATA-CSIC) and Dr. Jose.V. Gil (University of Valencia) during the 4-5 July 2018. Six students were selected for this hands-on Workshop where students isolated pigments from different fruits and analysed the absorbance spectra of the extracts. More than ten different fruits were selected for this Workshop, such as green pepper, cherry, sweet orange, blood orange, peach or raspberry, considering their coloration and pigments composition. Students were also familiarized with molecular biology techniques such as PCR by amplifying a fragment of the first gene of the carotenoid pathway `phytoene synthase´ from citrus. During the Workshop the carotenoid content and biosynthetic pathway in different fruits were reviewed highlighting the importance of these compounds for our health and nutrition.