Articles
Relative quantification of apocarotenoids in saffron (Crocus sativus L.)
Article number
1200_6
Pages
41 – 46
Language
English
Abstract
Saffron is most expensive spice, cultivated in many regions of the world.
Its chief metabolites include crocins, which are responsible for its color, safranal, which is the main essential oil constituent, and picrocrocin which is the main bitter constituent of the spice.
High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to quantify crocin and safranal from 31 saffron genotypes.
The respective values of crocin and safranal range between 40-45 and 0.19-0.28 mg g-1 with an average of 42.2±0.71 and 0.23±0.005 mg g-1 of dried stigma.
The results of HPLC showed that there is significant variation between selections with respect to apocarotenoid content.
Since there is no variation in saffron at genomic level, therefore this variation at biochemical level can be further exploited for saffron crop improvement.
Its chief metabolites include crocins, which are responsible for its color, safranal, which is the main essential oil constituent, and picrocrocin which is the main bitter constituent of the spice.
High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to quantify crocin and safranal from 31 saffron genotypes.
The respective values of crocin and safranal range between 40-45 and 0.19-0.28 mg g-1 with an average of 42.2±0.71 and 0.23±0.005 mg g-1 of dried stigma.
The results of HPLC showed that there is significant variation between selections with respect to apocarotenoid content.
Since there is no variation in saffron at genomic level, therefore this variation at biochemical level can be further exploited for saffron crop improvement.
Authors
J.I. Mir, N. Ahmed, A.H. Wafai, W. Shafi, R.A. Qadri
Keywords
HPLC, saffron, safranal, crocin, apocarotenoid
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