The
profiles of soluble and insoluble phenolic compounds in 11
commercial red sorghums (B11, B12, B13, B14, J124, J127, J138, J140,
J142, J152, and J158) were investigated using ultraperformance liquid
chromatography coupled to quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry
(UPLC/Q-TOF-MS) analysis. A total of 48 phenolic compounds including
35 phenolic acids and their derivatives, 12 flavonoids, and 1 proanthocyanidin
were identified, and 8 phenolic compounds were reported for the first
time in sorghums. Four major 3-deoxyanthocyanidins were also quantified,
with their soluble forms accounting for 99.75–99.87% of the
total contents. Pearson’s correlation analyses indicated that
3-deoxyanthocyanidins significantly contributed to the antioxidant
capacities of the red sorghums and that 5-methoxy-luteolinidin showed
the strongest correlation. Besides, the soluble phenolic fraction
of B13 dose-dependently inhibited the proliferation of Caco-2 cells
and the secretion of IL-1β and NO in RAW264.7 macrophages, which
might be attributed to its relatively high total phenolic (TPC), flavonoid
(TFC), and proanthocyanidin content (TPAC) values and radical scavenging
capacities.