Saffron petals, which are the main by-products of Crocus sativus L. (Iridaceae family), are produced in large quantities and are known for their many beneficial properties. In this regard, this study aims to investigate the phenolic composition and antibacterial properties of hydroethanolic extracts from Crocus sativus L. petals collected from Serghina (province of Boulmane) in Morocco. The phenolic profiles were characterized using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to a photodiode array and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HPLC-PDA-ESI/MS). The antibacterial potential was evaluated against four bacterial strains potentially causing food-borne disease (Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella typhimurium, Escherichia coli, and Listeria monocytogenes) using disc diffusion and broth micro-dilution assays. Results showed that a total of 27 phenolic compounds was detected in the Crocus sativus L. petal extracts, which were assigned to flavonoids (kaempferol, quercetin, isorhamnetin, and myricetin derivatives). The most abundant compound was represented by kaempferol-sophoroside isomer (20.82 mg/g ± 0.152), followed by kaempferol-sophoroside-hexoside (2.63 mg/g ± 0.001). The hydroethanolic extracts of Crocus sativus L. petals demonstrated bactericidal effects against Staphylococcus aureus and Listeria monocetogenes and bacteriostatic effects against Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium. Therefore, the by-product Crocus sativus L. petal extracts might be considered as valuable sources of natural antibacterial agents with potential applications in the food and pharmaceutical industries.
Numerous fungal plant pathogens can infect fresh fruits and vegetables during transit and storage conditions. The resulting infections were mainly controlled by synthetic fungicides, but their application has many drawbacks associated with the threatened environment and human health. Therefore, the use of natural plants with antimicrobial potential could be a promising alternative to overcome the side effects of fungicides. In this regard, this study aimed at evaluating the antifungal activity potential of saffron petal extract (SPE) against three mains important fungal pathogens: Rhizopus stolonifer, Penicillium digitatum and Botritys cinerea, which cause rot decay on the tomato, orange and apple fruits, respectively. In addition, the organic composition of SPE was characterized by attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FT-IR) spectroscopy and its biochemical, and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analyses were carried out. The obtained results highlighted an increased inhibition rate of the mycelial growth and spore germination of the three pathogenic fungi with increasing SPE concentrations. The mycelial growth and spore germination were completely inhibited at 10% of the SPE for Rhizopus stolonifer and Penicillium digitatum and at 5% for B. cinerea. Interestingly, the in vivo test showed the complete suppression of Rhizopus rot by the SPE at 10%, and a significant reduction of the severity of grey mold disease (37.19%) and green mold, when applied at 5 and 10%, respectively. The FT-IR spectra showed characteristic peaks and a variety of functional groups, which confirmed that SPE contains phenolic and flavonoid components. In addition, The average value of the total phenolic content, flavonoid content and half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) were 3.09 ± 0.012 mg GAE/g DW, 0.92 ± 0.004 mg QE/g DW and 235.15 ± 2.12 µg/mL, respectively. A volatile analysis showed that the most dominant component in the saffron petal is 2(5H)-Furanone (92.10%). Taken together, it was concluded that SPE could be used as an alternative to antioxidant and antifungal compounds for the control of postharvest diseases in fruits.
Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus L., which has a special aroma, color and odor influencing positively its economic value. In this context, ten saffron ecotypes were screened of their biochemical composition and antioxidant activity. The samples were also analyzed using GC-MS and LC-MS to determine their content of volatile and phenolic compounds, respectively. The results revealed statistically significant differences among samples based on moisture (9.09-11.23 %), total phenols (31.62-62.71mg EAG/g), total flavonoids (23.02-40.02mg ER/mg), total carotenoids (66.12-155.05µg/g), picrocrocin (88.99-121.53), crocin (137.44-228.39) and safranal (26.56-53.04). The radical scavenging activity ranged from 17.09 % to 29.53 % for DPPH assay, and oscillated from 0.128 mmol AAE/g to 0.239 mmol AAE/g for ABTS test, while the ferric reducing antioxidant potency (FRAP) varied from 0.974 to 1.989 mmol Fe 2+ /g. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis identified 66 volatile compounds, among which the Safranal and Isophorone were the most abondant. The ES1 from Taliouine recorded a very distinct volatile composition compared to the others ecotypes with 22 authentic volatile compounds. Moreover, liquid chromatographymass spectrometry (LC-MS) analysis revealed 14 phenolic compounds with picrocin and crocin were found to be the major compounds. The principal component analysis classified the investigated ecotypes into two mean distinctive sets with ES1and ES9 were distinguiqhed as a single ietms. The α-pinene, β-Pinene, Limonene, Anethole, Acetic acid, Ketoisophorone, Isophorone, Safranal, Thymoquinone, Total Flavonoids, FRAP and Total Carotenoids, are the main discriminant variables. The two-dimensional analysis of the clustered heatmaps divided showed a relatively smilar patterns as the Principale Component Analysis (PCA) and confirmed the singularity of the sample ES1 based on its particular volatile profile dominated mainly by α-Terpinyl acetate, Methyleugenol, Copaene, Anethole, Limonene, Methyl-Cyclopentane, which were not identified in the other samples even at minor levels. These findings herein found revealed the high quality of Moroccan saffron, which is very important for the species breeding and valorization.
Background: The saffron (Crocus sativus L.) planted area and production increased in the past decade in Morocco. This crop has been extended to new regions beyond its original main area due to the shift in climate conditions. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the chemical characterization and the quality of saffron stigma samples collected from 11 different localities.Results: According to the ISO3632 standard method, all samples were within the ISO36-32.2010 categorization range (category I and II) Contents of crocin responsible for color, picrocrocin responsible for taste, and safranal responsible for the aroma, showed significant differences between samples from different areas. The biochemical analysis revealed that samples from Boulmane (Serghina and El Mers) are rich in polyphenols (5.70 ± 0.34; 5.31 ± 0.004 mg GAE/g DW, respectively) and have an important antioxidant power (IC 50 for the DPPH: 231.12 ± 1.065; 236.77 ± 2109 respectively) compared to those from Taznakht and Taliouine known for their higher organoleptic quality. Interestingly, volatile profiling by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry identified the safranal, isophorone, ketoisophorone, ß-isophorone, and 1-4-cyclohexanedione, 2,2,6-trimethyl as the main volatile compounds in saffron samples from different regions. Conclusion:This study is the first to be conducted in Morocco on saffron newly cultivated in new regions (Boulmane, Azilal, and Ain Leuh) and showed the higher potential for growing saffron, thus promoting the adoption of saffron as a substitute crop for the socio-economic development in these new areas.
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