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Phenolic composition, antioxidant capacity, energy content and gastrointestinal stability of Croatian wild edible plants

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Abstract

Spectrophotometric and chromatographic analysis of phenolics in water and ethanolic extracts of wild asparagus, butcher’s broom and black bryony from Croatia was conducted. Their antioxidant capacity (ABTS, DPPH and FRAP assay) and energy content were determined. The gastrointestinal stability of detected phenolics was determined using a two-phase in vitro digestion method with human enzymes. The highest phenolics yield, radical scavenging activity and ferric reducing antioxidant potential were recorded in 40 % ethanolic extract of black bryony, with glycosylated forms of kaempferol as dominant components. Quercetin-3-O-rutinoside and isorhamnetin-3-O-rutinoside were dominant phenolics in all wild asparagus extracts, and salicylic acid was predominant in butcher’s broom 40 % ethanolic extract. Phenolic acids of the three species were not stable during gastric and duodenal phases of simulated digestion. Two main black bryony kaempferol glycosides were best preserved after digestion (50 % of each). Black bryony contains more energy than wild asparagus and butcher’s broom. Accordingly, we propose black bryony as a valuable source of antioxidant kaempferol glycosides with relevant gastrointestinal stability and higher energy content than so far more conventional vegetable wild asparagus.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Dr. Marko Miliša (Faculty of Science, Zagreb) for technical assistance with calorimeter bomb and Dr. Viljemka Bučević-Popović (Faculty of Science, University of Split) for help in determination of human digestive juices’ enzymatic activity. This research was not financially supported.

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Institute of Agriculture and Tourism, Karla Huguesa 8, 52440, Poreč, Croatia

      Danijela Poljuha

    2. Materials Research Centre METRIS, Istrian Development Agency, Zagrebačka 30, 52100, Pula, Croatia

      Danijela Poljuha & Josipa Bilić

    3. Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Rooseveltov trg 6, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia

      Ivana Šola & Gordana Rusak

    4. Agricultural Department Poreč, Polytechnic of Rijeka, Karla Huguesa 5, 52440, Poreč, Croatia

      Slavica Dudaš

    5. Faculty of Chemistry and Technology, University of Split, Teslina 10, 21000, Split, Croatia

      Tea Bilušić

    6. University Hospital Split, Spinčićeva 1, 21000, Split, Croatia

      Joško Markić

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    1. Danijela Poljuha
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    Correspondence to Ivana Šola.

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    Ethical standard

    This article contains a study with human digestive juices. The approval for the collection of digestive juices was obtained from the Ethics Committee of the University Hospital Centre Split (11/09/2014).

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    Danijela Poljuha and Ivana Šola have contributed equally to this work.

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    Poljuha, D., Šola, I., Bilić, J. et al. Phenolic composition, antioxidant capacity, energy content and gastrointestinal stability of Croatian wild edible plants. Eur Food Res Technol 241, 573–585 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-015-2486-y

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