Physico-Chemical and Phytochemical Characterization of Moroccan Wild Jujube “Zizyphus lotus (L.)” Fruit Crude Extract and Fractions

Abstract

Wild jujube “Ziziphus lotus (L.) Desf.” belongs to the Rhamnaceae family and is a traditionally herbaceous medicinal plant. It is very common in arid and semi-arid regions and is currently used for its antidiabetic, sedative, analgesic, anti-inflammatory and hypoglycemic activities. The aim of the present work was to characterize the physico-chemical properties and the phytochemical profile of wild jujube sample collected from the Guercif region, in order to determine the polyphenolic compounds and the antioxidant ability Analyses were carried out directly after the harvest for the determination of pH, refractive index, total soluble solid (°Brix), dry matter, sugar/acidity, total sugars, reducing sugars, as well as lipid and protein content. Results showed that the investigated fruit is acidic (pH 4.9 ± 0.23) and rich in sugars (80.2 g/100 g ± 3.81). The GC-MS analysis of the fruit revealed a number of volatile compounds, as many as 97, belonging to different chemical classes. The HPLC-DAD-ESI/MS analysis showed the presence of a total of 20 polyphenolic compounds in both EtOAc and MeOH-water extracts. Among them, p-Hydroxybenzoic acid was the most abundant in the EtOAc extract (185.68 µg/100 mg ± 0.5) whereas Quercetin 3-O-rhamnoside-7-O-glucoside was found in higher amounts in the MeOH-water extract (25.40 µg/100 mg ± 0.5). These components have medical interest, notably for human nutrition, as well as health benefits and therapeutic effects. Therefore, Moroccan jujube “Zizyphus lotus (L.)” fruit may have potential industrial applications for food formulations.

Elucidation of Antioxidant Compounds in Moroccan Chamaerops humilis L. Fruits by GC–MS and HPLC–MS Techniques

“…Another two studies obtained from a methanolic extract of C. humilis reported IC 50 values of 0.024 mg/mL [ 28 ] and 0.455 mg/mL [ 29 ]. Our findings are in agreement with previously reported papers on different species [ 26 , 30 ].…”

“…In total, 276.7 µg/g and 262.2 µg/g of polyphenolic compounds for the EtOAc and MeOH-H 2 O extracts of C. humilis, respectively, were attained. Such results are comparable with other Moroccan fruits, e.g., Ziziphus lotus, at least for the EtOAc extract (298.5 µg/g) [26].…”

“…Statistical analysis (ANOVA) showed that there was a highly significant difference in results ( p < 0.001) between the different solvent concentrations, thus indicating an effect of the solvent concentration on the extraction of these compounds [ 26 ].…”

“…The fruit harvesting was carried out at their physiological maturity in the early morning, transported in well-closed boxes and stored at −10 °C in the Materials and Resources Valorization Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences and Technology of Tangier. The extraction method employed was previously described by El Cadi et al (2020) [ 26 ]. Briefly, 5 g of lyophilized powder underwent a defatting step by adding three times 50 mL of n -hexane; afterwards, it was dried and homogenized with 50 mL of two solvents with increased polarity, namely EtOAc and MeOH-H 2 O 80:20 ( v / v ).…”

“…The IC 50 of the DPPH radical was calculated from linear regression (%DPPH remaining radical versus sample concentration). temperature: 350 • C, heat block temperature: 300 • C, DL (desolvation line) temperature: 300 • C, DL voltage: 1 V, interface voltage: −4.5 kV [26].…”