## 2 Results and Discussion
### Pearson Correlation Analysis between Bioactive Compounds and Antioxidant Activity  
To evaluate the interrelationship between bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity in acerola, guava and pitanga pulps and in the blend, [PERSON]'s correlation analysis between these variables was applied (Figure 1).  
It is observed that the ability to scavenge free radicals by DPPH correlated positively, significantly and strongly (r between 0.70-0.89) with the bioactive compounds ascorbic acid (AA), total phenolic compounds (TPC), flavonoids (Flavo) and carotenoids (Carot) and very strong (r between 0.90-1.00) with anthocyanins (Antoci). The correlation of antioxidant activity via FRAP was positive, significant and moderate (r between 0.40-0.69) with the content of ascorbic acid, flavonoids and anthocyanins; strong (r between 0.70-0.89) with TPC and negative, significant and moderate with Licop. For the ABTS assay, the correlation was only significant, positive and strong for carotenoids. Significant, positive and strong correlations of antioxidant activity as indicated via FRAP, ABTS and DPPH with total phenolic compounds and flavonoids content for five peach cultivars were also reported by [PERSON] et al. [62].  
Figure 1: Heat map representing Pearson’s correlation between bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity Significance of Pearson’s correlation: * \(p<0.05\); * \(p<0.01\); *** \(p<0.001\).  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c} \hline \hline
**Samples** &
\begin{tabular}{c} **FRAP** \\ **(\(\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{ }} }}}}}}}}}}}}}\) \\ \end{tabular}} & **ABTS (\(\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{ }}}}}}}}}}}}}}}\))** \\ \end{tabular} } & **DPPH (\(\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{\mathbf{ \mathbf{\mathbf{ }}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}\))** \\ \end{tabular} } \\ \hline \hline \multicolumn{4}{l}{Acerola} & 21.99 \(\pm\) 0.02 A & 11.14 \(\pm\) 0.20 A & 6.71 \(\pm\) 0.09 A \\ Guava & 20.15 \(\pm\) 0.40 B & 7.68 \(\pm\) 0.42 B & 5.14 \(\pm\) 0.04 C \\ Pitanga & 15.63 \(\pm\) 0.74 C & 8.86 \(\pm\) 0.18 B & 6.17 \(\pm\) 0.01 B \\ Blend & 22.02 \(\pm\) 0.00 A & 6.88 \(\pm\) 2.01 B & 6.76 \(\pm\) 0.08 A \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}  
* Means followed by the same letters in the columns do not differ statistically according to [PERSON]’s test at 5% probability (\(p\geq 0.05\)).  
\end{table}
Table 5: Antioxidant activity according to FRAP, ABTS and DPPH of acerola, guava and pitanga pulps and the prepared blend.  
It appears that the DPPH assay correlated more strongly with ascorbic acid, flavonoids, anthocyanins and carotenoids than the other assays, while the FRAP assay correlated better with total phenolic compounds and lycopene. Thus, it is evident that the antioxidant activity of the pulps/blend is mainly due to the phenolic compounds (TPC, flavonoids, anthocyanins and carotenoids) and also to the ascorbic acid content. The antioxidant activity of phenolic compounds is controlled through intermolecular interactions that can be synergistic or antagonistic, depending on the conditions and substances to be evaluated [43].