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Determination of Phenolic Compounds in Artichoke, Garlic and Spinach by Ultra-High-Performance Liquid Chromatography Coupled to Tandem Mass Spectrometry

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Abstract

Phenolic compounds were determined in artichoke (Cynara scolymus), garlic (Allium sativium) and spinach (Spinacia oleracea) using a single method based on simple extraction and ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QqQ-MS/MS). Several compounds belonging to different families, such as phenolic acids, isoflavones, flavones and flavonols, were determined. The analytical procedure was validated in all the matrices, obtaining recoveries ranging from 60 to 120 % with reproducibility values (expressed as relative standard deviations (RSDs)) lower than 26 %. Limits of quantification (LOQs) were always equal to or lower than 50 μg/kg, except to kaempferol and its glucosides in spinach (LOQs = 75 μg/kg). Artichoke showed higher concentration of phenolic compounds (837.2 mg/kg dry weight (DW)) than garlic (26.5 mg/kg DW) or spinach (64.5 mg/kg DW). Apigenin 7-O-glucoside (from 147.0 to 722.7 mg/kg DW) was found to be the major flavonoid in all samples of artichoke investigated, while chlorogenic acid, whose concentration ranged from 37.8 to 734.7 mg/kg DW, is the major phenolic acid in this matrix. Regarding garlic, caffeic acid (from 1.7 to 28.3 mg/kg DW) and quercetin (from 9.0 to 18.9 mg/kg DW) were the compounds detected at higher concentrations, although in general the total content was very low in relation to other matrices. In relation to spinach, ferulic acid was the major phenolic compound, and its concentration ranged from 18.0 to 41.4 mg/kg DW.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to Andalusian Regional Government (Regional Ministry of Innovation, Science and Enterprise) (Ref. P11-AGR-7034). MIAF acknowledges her grant (FPU, Ref: AP 2009-2074) from the Spanish Ministry of Education. RRG is also grateful to Almeria University for personal funding.

Conflict of Interest

María Isabel Alarcón Flores declares that she has no conflict of interest. María Isabel Alarcón Flores has received a research grant from the Spanish Ministry of Education. Roberto Romero González declares that he has no conflict of interest. Jose Luís Martínez Vidal declares that he has no conflict of interest. Antonia Garrido Frenich declares that she has no conflict of interest. This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects.

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  1. Department of Chemistry and Physics (Analytical Chemistry Area), Research Centre for Agricultural and Food Biotechnology (BITAL), University of Almería, Agrifood Campus of International Excellence, ceiA3, 04120, Almería, Spain

    María Isabel Alarcón-Flores, Roberto Romero-González, José Luis Martínez Vidal & Antonia Garrido Frenich

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  1. María Isabel Alarcón-Flores
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  2. Roberto Romero-González
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  3. José Luis Martínez Vidal
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  4. Antonia Garrido Frenich
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Correspondence to Antonia Garrido Frenich.

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Alarcón-Flores, M.I., Romero-González, R., Martínez Vidal, J.L. et al. Determination of Phenolic Compounds in Artichoke, Garlic and Spinach by Ultra-High-Performance Liquid Chromatography Coupled to Tandem Mass Spectrometry. Food Anal. Methods 7, 2095–2106 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12161-014-9852-4

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