Determination and Quantitation of Anthocyanins and Hydroxycinnamic Acids in Different Cultivars of Sweet Cherries (Prunus avium L.) from Nova Gorica Region (Slovenia)
Branka Mozetič1, Polonca Trebše1* and Janez Hribar2
1Nova Gorica Polytechnic, Laboratory for Environmental Research, Vipavska 13, P.O. Box 301, SI-5001 Nova Gorica, Slovenia
2Department of Food Science and Technology, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 101, SI-1111 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Article history:
Received: January 9, 2002
Accepted: June 18, 2002
Key words:
sweet cherries (Prunus avium L.), anthocyanins, hydroxycinnamic acids, HPLC
Summary:
The anthocyanins and hydroxycinnamic acids in 5 cultivars of dark coloured sweet cherries were characterised and quantified by means of HPLC and UV-VIS spectrophotometry. Phenolic components were extracted with pure methanol, without addition of acid and water. The samples were diluted in the mixture of methanol and formic acid just before the injection on the column and separated on Hypersil PEP 300 C18 chromatographic column using gradient solvent system consisting of formic acid, water and methanol. DAD detector was employed and two wavelengths were chosen for determination of different components; 320 nm for hydroxycinnamates and 520 nm for anthocyanins. We detected the presence of cyanidin-3-glucoside and cyanidin-3-rutinoside as major anthocyanins, while pelargonidin-3-rutinoside was identified among minor pigments. The major hydroxycinnamic acids were characterised as neochlorogenic acid and 3'-p-coumaroylquinic acid. Total anthocyanin content (expressed as cyanidin-3-glucoside) ranged from 29 to 62 mg/100 g of pitted cherry fresh weight (FW), with the highest content observed in Petrovka, a local cultivar. Concentrations of neochlorogenic acid and 3’-p-coumaroylquinic acid ranged from 19.5 to 53.0 mg/100 g FW and from 7.5 to 50.6 mg/100 g FW, respectively. The relative amounts of these two phenolic acids varied widely between the cherry cultivars examined in this study.
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