PumpkinA pumpkin is a vernacular term for mature winter squash of species and varieties in the genus Cucurbita that has culinary and cultural significance but no agreed upon botanical or scientific meaning. The term pumpkin is sometimes used interchangeably with "squash" or "winter squash", and is commonly used for cultivars of Cucurbita argyrosperma, Cucurbita ficifolia, Cucurbita maxima, Cucurbita moschata, and Cucurbita pepo. Native to North America (northeastern Mexico and the southern United States), C.
AnnattoAnnatto (əˈnætoʊ or əˈnɑːtoʊ) is an orange-red condiment and food coloring derived from the seeds of the achiote tree (Bixa orellana), native to tropical parts of the Americas. It is often used to impart a yellow or orange color to foods, but sometimes also for its flavor and aroma. Its scent is described as "slightly peppery with a hint of nutmeg" and flavor as "slightly nutty, sweet and peppery". The color of annatto comes from various carotenoid pigments, mainly bixin and norbixin, found in the reddish waxy coating of the seeds.
IsopreneIsoprene, or 2-methyl-1,3-butadiene, is a common volatile organic compound with the formula CH2=C(CH3)−CH=CH2. In its pure form it is a colorless volatile liquid. It is produced by many plants and animals (including humans) and its polymers are the main component of natural rubber. C. G. Williams named the compound in 1860 after obtaining it from the pyrolysis of natural rubber; he correctly deduced the empirical formula C5H8. Isoprene is produced and emitted by many species of trees (major producers are oaks, poplars, eucalyptus, and some legumes).
TomatoThe tomato (təmeɪtoʊ or təmaːtoʊ) is the edible berry of the plant Solanum lycopersicum, commonly known as the tomato plant. The species originated in western South America, Mexico, and Central America. The Nahuatl word tomatl gave rise to the Spanish word tomate, from which the English word tomato derived. Its domestication and use as a cultivated food may have originated with the indigenous peoples of Mexico.
E numberE numbers ("E" stands for "Europe") are codes for substances used as food additives, including those found naturally in many foods such as vitamin C, for use within the European Union (EU) and European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Commonly found on food labels, their safety assessment and approval are the responsibility of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). The fact that an additive has an E number implies that its use was at one time permitted in products for sale in the European Single Market; some of these additives are no longer allowed today.
Vitamin A deficiencyVitamin A deficiency (VAD) or hypovitaminosis A is a lack of vitamin A in blood and tissues. It is common in poorer countries, especially among children and women of reproductive age, but is rarely seen in more developed countries. Nyctalopia (night blindness) is one of the first signs of VAD, as the vitamin has a major role in phototransduction. Xerophthalmia, keratomalacia, and complete blindness can follow if the deficiency is more severe.
Autumn leaf colorAutumn leaf color is a phenomenon that affects the normal green leaves of many deciduous trees and shrubs by which they take on, during a few weeks in the autumn season, various shades of yellow, orange, red, purple, and brown. The phenomenon is commonly called autumn colours or autumn foliage in British English and fall colors, fall foliage, or simply foliage in American English. In some areas of Canada and the United States, "leaf peeping" tourism is a major contribution to economic activity.
MangoA mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree Mangifera indica. It is believed to have originated in southern Asia, particularly in eastern India, Bangladesh, and the Andaman Islands. M. indica has been cultivated in South and Southeast Asia since ancient times resulting in two types of modern mango cultivars: the "Indian type" and the "Southeast Asian type". Other species in the genus Mangifera also produce edible fruits that are also called "mangoes", the majority of which are found in the Malesian ecoregion.
AstaxanthinAstaxanthin æstəˈzænθᵻn is a keto-carotenoid within a group of chemical compounds known as terpenes. Astaxanthin is a metabolite of zeaxanthin and canthaxanthin, containing both hydroxyl and ketone functional groups. It is a lipid-soluble pigment with red coloring properties, which result from the extended chain of conjugated (alternating double and single) double bonds at the center of the compound. Astaxanthin is produced naturally in the freshwater microalgae Haematococcus pluvialis and the yeast fungus Xanthophyllomyces dendrorhous (also known as Phaffia rhodozyma).
ChromophoreA chromophore is the part of a molecule responsible for its color. The color that is seen by our eyes is the one not absorbed by the reflecting object within a certain wavelength spectrum of visible light. The chromophore is a region in the molecule where the energy difference between two separate molecular orbitals falls within the range of the visible spectrum (or in informal contexts, the spectrum under scrutiny). Visible light that hits the chromophore can thus be absorbed by exciting an electron from its ground state into an excited state.
