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LC-ESI-QTOF/MS characterization of bioactive compounds from black spices and their potential antioxidant activities

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Abstract

Black pepper (Piper nigrum L.), black cumin (Nigella sativa L.) and black cardamom (Amomum subulatum) are considered as important spices, seasoning and folk medicines. They have a diverse range of bioactive compounds, especially for polyphenolic compounds. These polyphenolic compounds contribute to the putative health benefits of these black spices. The purpose of this study was to identify, characterize and quantify the phenolic profile of these black spices using LC-ESI-QTOF/MS and HPLC–PDA and to access their antioxidant potential. The LC-ESI-QTOF/MS analysis led to the identification of 138 phenolic compounds in three black spices. In HPLC–PDA, the p-hydroxybenzoic acid was the most predominant phenolic acid in black pepper and black cumin while diosmin was the most abundant flavonoid in black cardamom (> 20 mg/g). Furthermore, black spices were systematically measured for their TPC, TFC and TTC followed by measurement of their antioxidant activities using DPPH, FRAP and ABTS assays. Black pepper showed the highest TPC, TFC, TTC, DPPH and ABTS activities as compared to other black spices while black cardamom exhibited the highest FRAP activity. The obtained results highlight the importance of these black spices as promising sources of phenolic compounds and they could be potentially utilized in food, feed and nutraceutical industries.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Dr. Nicholas Williamson, Dr. Shuai Nie and Dr. Michael Leeming from the Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics Facility, Bio21 Institute, VIC, Australia for providing access and support for the use of HPLC and LC-ESI-QTOF/MS and data analysis. We would also like to thank for Chunhe Gu, Rana Dildar Khan, Chao Ma, Danying Peng, Jiafei Tang, Biming Zhong, Danwei Yang, Yasir Iqbal and Akhtar Ali from the School of Agriculture and Food, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, the University of Melbourne for their incredible support.

Funding

This research was funded by the University of Melbourne (Grant No. UoM-18/21) under the “McKenzie Fellowship Scheme” and the “Faculty Research Initiative Funds” funded by the Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Australia.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Agriculture and Food, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, 3010, Australia

    Yuying Feng, Frank R. Dunshea & Hafiz A. R. Suleria

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  1. Yuying Feng
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  2. Frank R. Dunshea
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  3. Hafiz A. R. Suleria
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Contributions

Conceptualization, methodology, validation and investigation, Hafiz Suleria, Yuying Feng and Frank Dunshea; resources, Hafiz Suleria and Frank Dunshea.; writing—original draft preparation, Yuying Feng and Hafiz Suleria; writing—review and editing, Hafiz Suleria and Frank Dunshea.; supervision, Hafiz Suleria and Frank Dunshea.; funding acquisition, Hafiz Suleria and Frank Dunshea.

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Correspondence to Hafiz A. R. Suleria.

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Feng, Y., Dunshea, F.R. & Suleria, H.A.R. LC-ESI-QTOF/MS characterization of bioactive compounds from black spices and their potential antioxidant activities. J Food Sci Technol 57, 4671–4687 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-020-04504-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-020-04504-4

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