Red-skinned sunspots, in our view, are red-seedling watermelons. So, have you ever eaten yellow watermelon? Its appearance looks no different from that of a red watermelon, except that the flesh is yellow at the moment of cutting. So, is cucumber treated with hormone or transgenic technology? What's the difference between it and a red melon?
In fact, yellow meat is not caused by hormones, and of course it is not genetically modified. Whether it is wild watermelon or cultivated watermelon, the pulp color ranges from white, light yellow, bright yellow, pink, orange to big red. In this case, it is not necessary to study transgenic technology to change color.
So, what determines the color of the pulp? It's a powerful gene! It is not determined by a single gene, but by multiple genes. At least three genes control the color of watermelon pulp, and each gene locus has two or three alleles, which makes watermelon so rich in color.
Genes control the variety and quantity of carotenoids, and it is these differences that let us see white flesh, yellow flesh and red flesh. The pigment analysis of melon meat shows that red watermelon mainly contains lycopene, and the content of lycopene will play a decisive role in forming different colors such as light red and bright red. Orange pulp mainly contains a variety of carotene, such as ζ carotene and β carotene. White pulp mainly contains flavanone, which is combined with various sugars and exists in cell fluid in the form of glycoside.
But whether it is yellow pulp or red pulp, it is beneficial and harmless to human body. Lycopene in red fruit flesh and lutein in yellow flesh have anti-cancer and anti-aging effects, and are good antioxidant foods. The reason why yellow watermelon is not as common as red watermelon is that yellow watermelon is picky and has high geological requirements, which is not convenient for large-scale popularization and planting.
Of course, many people who prefer red melons are not excluded. After all, in today's emphasis on food safety, people always have some resistance to things that are not so popular. However, as mentioned above, there is no need for yellow melon to do so. In the era when melon farmers kept their own seeds and planted them themselves, yellow flesh was also very common.
Never mind the yellow pulp or the red pulp, the sweet taste is a good melon! However, according to the research, the center sweetness of red flesh melon is higher than that of yellow flesh melon. The data prove that the sugar content of white pulp is about 5.0%, yellow pulp is about 8.5%, and red pulp is about 10%, so everyone likes red pulp better.
References: Comparison of Carotenoids Content and Composition between Red Watermelon and Yellow Watermelon, Back, Food Science, 2008- 12- 15.