Bambara groundnut (BGN) is an underexploited crop with a rich nutrient content and is used in traditional medicine, but limited information is available on the quantitative characterization of its flavonoids and phenolic acids. We investigated the phenolic profile of whole seeds and cotyledons of five BGN varieties consumed in South Africa using UPLC-qTOF-MS and GC-MS. Twenty-six phenolic compounds were detected/quantified in whole seeds and twenty-four in cotyledon, with six unidentified compounds. Flavonoids include flavan-3-ol (catechin, catechin hexoside-A, catechin hexoside-B), flavonol (quercetin, quercetin-3-O-glucoside, rutin, myricetin, kaempherol), hydroxybenzoic acid (4-Hydroxybenzoic, 2,6 Dimethoxybenzoic, protocatechuic, vanillic, syringic, syringaldehyde, gallic acids), hydroxycinnamic acid (trans-cinnamic, p-coumaric, caffeic, ferulic acids) and lignan (medioresinol). The predominant flavonoids were catechin/derivatives, with the highest content (78.56 mg/g) found in brown BGN. Trans-cinnamic and ferulic acids were dominant phenolic acid. Cotyledons of brown and brown-eyed BGN (317.71 and 378.59 µg/g) had the highest trans-cinnamic acid content, while red seeds had the highest ferulic acid (314.76 µg/g) content. Colored BGN had a significantly (p < 0.05) higher content of these components. Whole BGN contained significantly (p < 0.05) higher amount of flavonoids and phenolic acids, except for the trans-cinnamic acid. The rich flavonoid and phenolic acid content of BGN seeds highlights the fact that it is a good source of dietary phenolics with potential health-promoting properties.
Keywords: Bambara groundnut landraces; bioactive molecules; characterization; cotyledon; flavonoid; mass spectrometry; phenolic acid; phenolic compounds; quantification; whole seed.