Carotenoid and Tocopherol Profiling in 18 Korean Traditional Green Leafy Vegetables by LC-SIM-MS

Eun-Young Ko; Ji-Ho Lee; Iyyakkannu Sivanesan; Mi-Jung Choi; Young-Soo Keum; Ramesh Kumar Saini

doi:10.3390/foods12061312

Carotenoid and Tocopherol Profiling in 18 Korean Traditional Green Leafy Vegetables by LC-SIM-MS

Foods. 2023 Mar 19;12(6):1312. doi: 10.3390/foods12061312.

Authors

Eun-Young Ko¹, Ji-Ho Lee², Iyyakkannu Sivanesan³, Mi-Jung Choi¹, Young-Soo Keum², Ramesh Kumar Saini²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Food Science and Biotechnology of Animal Resources, Konkuk University, Seoul 05029, Republic of Korea.
² Department of Crop Science, Konkuk University, Seoul 05029, Republic of Korea.
³ Department of Bioresources and Food Science, Institute of Natural Science and Agriculture, Konkuk University, Seoul 05029, Republic of Korea.

Abstract

Fruits and vegetables are a vital source of redox-active phytochemicals in the diet. Traditional green leafy vegetables (GLVs) are a rich source of carotenoids, dietary fiber, minerals, phenols, vitamins, and tocopherols and are commonly consumed in rural areas worldwide. In traditional Korean medicine, many GLVs are used to treat various ailments. However, data on the carotenoid and tocopherol content of many traditional GLVs consumed in the Republic of Korea are insufficient. The current work aims to compare the carotenoid and tocopherol profiles of 18 traditional GLVs by utilizing a single ion monitoring LC-MS approach to identify the potential GLVs for commercial cultivation and healthy diet formulations. Among the traditional GLVs investigated, (all-E)-lutein was the most abundant carotenoid, ranging from 44.4% in Glehnia littoralis to 52.1% in Heracleum moellendorffii. It was followed by (all-E)-violaxanthin and (all-E)-β-carotene. The highest contents of (all-E)-violaxanthin (75.6 µg/g FW), 9-Z-neoxanthin (48.4 µg/g FW), (all-E)-luteoxanthin (10.8 µg/g FW), (all-E)-lutein (174.1 µg/g FW), total xanthophylls (310.5 µg/g FW), (all-E)-β-carotene (69.6 µg/g FW), and total carotenoids (380.1 µg/g FW) were recorded in Pimpinella brachycarpa. Surprisingly, Taraxacum mongolicum also showed the highest contents of (all-E)-violaxanthin, (all-E)-lutein, and total carotenoids, which were statistically non-significant (p > 0.05, Tukey HSD) with P. brachycarpa. The highest concentration of (all-E)-zeaxanthin (14.4 µg/g FW) was recorded in Solidago virga-aurea. Among the studied herbs, 13.9 (H. moellendorffii)-133.6 µg/g FW (Toona sinensis) of α-tocopherol was recorded. Overall, the results suggest that P. brachycarpa and T. mongolicum are rich sources of carotenoids. On the other hand, T. sinensis is a rich source of α-tocopherol. These GLVs can be utilized in the diet to enhance the intake of health-beneficial carotenoids and α-tocopherol.

Keywords: Pimpinella brachycarpa; Taraxacum mongolicum; Toona sinensis; lutein; phytochemicals; provitamin A; β-carotene.

Grants and funding

This research received no external funding.