New Insights on Primary and Secondary Metabolite Contents of Seven Italian Wild Food Plants with Medicinal Applications: A Comparative Study
Wild food plants are widely consumed all over the world and many have both nutritional and therapeutic value due to the presence of biologically active compounds. The present research, for the first time, aims to compare primary and secondary metabolite levels among different plant organs (flower, l...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-09-01
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| Series: | Plants |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/18/3180 |
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| author | Stefania Monari Maura Ferri Mirko Salinitro Annalisa Tassoni |
| author_facet | Stefania Monari Maura Ferri Mirko Salinitro Annalisa Tassoni |
| author_sort | Stefania Monari |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Wild food plants are widely consumed all over the world and many have both nutritional and therapeutic value due to the presence of biologically active compounds. The present research, for the first time, aims to compare primary and secondary metabolite levels among different plant organs (flower, leaf, stem, root, bark) of seven species (<i>Borago officinalis</i> L., <i>Cynodon dactylon</i> (L.) Pers., <i>Foeniculum vulgare</i> Mill., <i>Hypericum perforatum</i> L., <i>Malva sylvestris</i> L., <i>Sambucus nigra</i> L., <i>Urtica dioica</i> L.) collected in three different Italian regions (Liguria, Tuscany, Apulia). Plant organ samples were extracted with water or 95% (<i>v</i>/<i>v</i>) methanol and liquid fractions were analyzed using spectrophotometric assays. The best results were obtained for <i>Hypericum perforatum</i> L. samples, followed by <i>Sambucus nigra</i> L. and <i>Borago officinalis</i> L. As also confirmed via PCA analysis on normalized data, flower and leaf extracts of all species exhibited higher levels of polyphenols (up to 105.7 mg GA eq/gDW), reducing sugars (up to 389.2 mg GLUC eq/gDW), proteins (up to 675.7 mg BSA eq/gDW) and of antioxidant capacity (up to 263.5 mg AA eq/gDW). No differences among the regions of gathering were detected after spectrophotometric assays, which was confirmed via PCA analysis. These data contribute to further validate the traditionally reported healing effects of these species on human health. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T22:13:50Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e7eedf0617c34d5d94ae2880d2c007bb |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2223-7747 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T22:13:50Z |
| publishDate | 2023-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Plants |
| spelling | doaj.art-e7eedf0617c34d5d94ae2880d2c007bb2023-11-19T12:31:14ZengMDPI AGPlants2223-77472023-09-011218318010.3390/plants12183180New Insights on Primary and Secondary Metabolite Contents of Seven Italian Wild Food Plants with Medicinal Applications: A Comparative StudyStefania Monari0Maura Ferri1Mirko Salinitro2Annalisa Tassoni3Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, Via Irnerio n. 42, 40126 Bologna, ItalyDepartment of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, Via Irnerio n. 42, 40126 Bologna, ItalyDepartment of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, Via Irnerio n. 42, 40126 Bologna, ItalyDepartment of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, University of Bologna, Via Irnerio n. 42, 40126 Bologna, ItalyWild food plants are widely consumed all over the world and many have both nutritional and therapeutic value due to the presence of biologically active compounds. The present research, for the first time, aims to compare primary and secondary metabolite levels among different plant organs (flower, leaf, stem, root, bark) of seven species (<i>Borago officinalis</i> L., <i>Cynodon dactylon</i> (L.) Pers., <i>Foeniculum vulgare</i> Mill., <i>Hypericum perforatum</i> L., <i>Malva sylvestris</i> L., <i>Sambucus nigra</i> L., <i>Urtica dioica</i> L.) collected in three different Italian regions (Liguria, Tuscany, Apulia). Plant organ samples were extracted with water or 95% (<i>v</i>/<i>v</i>) methanol and liquid fractions were analyzed using spectrophotometric assays. The best results were obtained for <i>Hypericum perforatum</i> L. samples, followed by <i>Sambucus nigra</i> L. and <i>Borago officinalis</i> L. As also confirmed via PCA analysis on normalized data, flower and leaf extracts of all species exhibited higher levels of polyphenols (up to 105.7 mg GA eq/gDW), reducing sugars (up to 389.2 mg GLUC eq/gDW), proteins (up to 675.7 mg BSA eq/gDW) and of antioxidant capacity (up to 263.5 mg AA eq/gDW). No differences among the regions of gathering were detected after spectrophotometric assays, which was confirmed via PCA analysis. These data contribute to further validate the traditionally reported healing effects of these species on human health.https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/18/3180antioxidant activitymedicinal plantspolyphenolswild food plants |
| spellingShingle | Stefania Monari Maura Ferri Mirko Salinitro Annalisa Tassoni New Insights on Primary and Secondary Metabolite Contents of Seven Italian Wild Food Plants with Medicinal Applications: A Comparative Study Plants antioxidant activity medicinal plants polyphenols wild food plants |
| title | New Insights on Primary and Secondary Metabolite Contents of Seven Italian Wild Food Plants with Medicinal Applications: A Comparative Study |
| title_full | New Insights on Primary and Secondary Metabolite Contents of Seven Italian Wild Food Plants with Medicinal Applications: A Comparative Study |
| title_fullStr | New Insights on Primary and Secondary Metabolite Contents of Seven Italian Wild Food Plants with Medicinal Applications: A Comparative Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | New Insights on Primary and Secondary Metabolite Contents of Seven Italian Wild Food Plants with Medicinal Applications: A Comparative Study |
| title_short | New Insights on Primary and Secondary Metabolite Contents of Seven Italian Wild Food Plants with Medicinal Applications: A Comparative Study |
| title_sort | new insights on primary and secondary metabolite contents of seven italian wild food plants with medicinal applications a comparative study |
| topic | antioxidant activity medicinal plants polyphenols wild food plants |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/18/3180 |
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