Associations between Fruit Mineral Composition and Polyphenol Profiles across 140 Dessert Apple Cultivars ( Malus domestica )

High Resolution Image Download MS PowerPoint Slide Apple polyphenols are key determinants of fruit quality and potential health-related properties, yet their association with fruit mineral composition remains insufficiently characterized at the cultivar scale. We quantified five minerals (K, S, P, Mg, Ca) by ICP-OES and 13 polyphenol variables by HPLC-MS across 140 dessert apple cultivars ( Malus domestica ) grown under common conditions. FDR-corrected Pearson correlations revealed selective, compound-specific patterns, with potassium and phosphorus showing the strongest positive associations with chlorogenic acid (K: r = 0.55, q = 1.2 × 10 –10; P: r = 0.43, q = 2.7 × 10 –6 ), both robust under Spearman analysis. Partial correlations identified potassium as the dominant independent correlate (partial r = 0.39, q = 6.5 × 10 –5 ), while phosphorus, sulfur, and magnesium associations reflected collinearity with potassium. PLS showed only modest coupling (Q 2 ≈ 0.06, R 2 Y ≈ 0.13). Exploratory sulfur–chlorogenic acid and calcium–cyanidin patterns remain preliminary; findings represent cultivar-scale associations, not orchard-management recommendations.