Arecaceae fruits: Fatty acids, phenolic compounds and in vitro antitumor activity

Abstract

Arecaceae fruits are regarded as raw sources of valuable phytochemicals. In this work, several Arecaceae fruits belonging to eleven taxa were screened for fatty acids (FA) by gas chromatography with flame ionization detector and checked for their in vitro antitumor activity against the HT-29 colorectal cancer cells line through the MTT test. The parallel use of two chromatography systems, HPLC-DAD and LC-MS, allowed the precise characterization of all phenolic compounds contained in the fruits. Howea belmoreana had the highest FA amounts (11.7 g/100 g on dry weight); Syagrus romanzoffiana had a relatively high PUFA content (26.3% of total FA); and Butia capitata contains high amounts of medium-chain saturated FA (51.2%). Total phenolics reached 201.8 mg/100 g on dry weight in Phoenix dactylifera var. Medjool. Among phenolics, occurred benzoic acids, phenylpropanoic acid, and cinnamic acid derivatives. It highlights the great diversity of flavonoids detected as (−)-catechin, quercetin, and kaempferol, as well as phenolic glycosides, such as isorhamnetin-3-O-glucoside. The methanol:water (60:40, v/v) extracts of fruits induced dose- and time-dependent inhibitory effects on HT-29 cancer cells. Overall, the fruits of Arecaceae taxa evaluated here constitute suitable candidates to be used as functional foods.