Characterisation of Phenolic Compounds in South African Plum Fruits (Prunus salicina Lindl.) using HPLC Coupled with Diode-Array, Fluorescence, Mass Spectrometry and On-Line Antioxidant Detection

Abstract

Phenolic compounds are abundant secondary metabolites in plums, with potential health benefits believed to be due to their antioxidant activity, amongst others. Phenolic characterisation of South African Prunus salicina Lindl. plums is necessary to fully evaluate their potential health benefits. An HPLC method using diode-array detection (DAD) for quantification of phenolic compounds was improved and fluorescence detection (FLD) was added for quantification of flavan-3-ols. Validation of the HPLC-DAD-FLD method showed its suitability for quantification of 18 phenolic compounds, including flavan-3-ols using FLD, and phenolic acids, anthocyanins and flavonols using DAD. The method was suitable for characterisation of the phenolic composition of 11 South African plum cultivars and selections, including various types with yellow and red skin and flesh. The method was used in conjunction with mass spectrometry (MS) to identify 24 phenolic compounds. Neochlorogenic acid and cyanidin-3-O-glucoside were the major compounds in most of the plums, while cyanidin-3-O-glucoside was absent in Sun Breeze plums with yellow skin and flesh. Post-column on-line coupling of the ABTS•+ scavenging assay with HPLC-DAD enabled qualitative evaluation of the relative contribution of individual phenolic compounds to the antioxidant activity. The flavan-3-ols, neochlorogenic acid and cyanidin-3-O-glucoside displayed the largest antioxidant response peaks.

Phytochemicals in Japanese plums: impact of maturity and bioaccessibility

“…Fanning et al, 2010;Netzel et al, 2012) Quercetin glycosides were analyzed with the same HPLC system as outlined in phase B. Identification and quantitation of quercetin/quercetin glycosides was undertaken at 355 nm using the following standards, quercetin-3-rutinoside (rutin), quercetin-3-glucoside, quercetin-3-galactoside, quercetin and comparison with literature (Jaiswal et al, 2013;Venter et al, 2013).…”

“…are very significant sources of dietary anthocyanins (such as the variety Queen Garnet [QG]) and quercetin glycosides (K. Fanning, Topp, Russell, Stanley, & Netzel, 2014;Venter, Joubert, & de Beer, 2013). It has been previously shown in pilot trials that anthocyanin content increases with maturity in QG (K. Fanning et al, 2013) and other plums (K. Fanning et al, 2014) but content of quercetin glycosides and carotenoids are of interest but have not been studied.…”

The effect of different concentrations of pre-harvest gibberellic acid on the quality and durability of ‘Obilnaja’ and ‘Black Star’ plum varieties

“…Japanese plums are produced for fresh consumption, and their varieties differ significantly in shape, size, taste, appearance, and postharvest durability (Venter et al, 2013). Earlier studies on the quality and storage of Japanese plums were focused on the ' Angelina' variety (Erkan et al, 2005;Dzkaya et al, 2005;Kaynas et al, 2010;Erogul & Sen, 2015).…”

Shelf life stability of red‐fleshed plum nectars: role of polyphenol fortification on quality parameters

“…This would lead to an increase in co‐pigment:anthocyanin ratio, causing an increased co‐pigmentation effect explaining the small amount of red colour loss. Other co‐pigments not quantified in the present study, such as flavonol glycosides, phenolic acids and flavan‐3‐ols (Venter et al ., ), may also have contributed to this phenomenon. Wilska‐Jeszka and Korzuchowska () showed that red colour increased with increasing chlorogenic acid content in strawberry and chokeberry juices.…”