Abstract
Plants belonging to the genus Passiflora produce exuberant flowers with characteristic corona filaments that vary widely in size, morphology and color. This variability is thought to be an adaptation to different animal pollinators. In general, Passiflora flowers are pollinated by bees, hummingbirds and bats. The aim of this study was to identify the anthocyanins present in the corona filaments of two wild parent species, P. incarnata and P. coccinea, that are pollinated by bees and hummingbirds, respectively, and their artificial commercial hybrid P. ‘Lady Margaret’. The anthocyanin profiles of the corona filaments were characterized by ultra-high performance chromatography with electrospray ionization and tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS). Monoglucosides of two anthocyanidins (cyanidin and pelargonidin) were found in P. coccinea corona filaments, whereas diglucosides of four anthocyanidins (cyanidin, petunidin, peonidin and malvidin) were identified in P. incarnata corona. The P. ‘Lady Margaret’ hybrid contained both mono and diglucosides of the anthocyanidins identified in the parent species and also novel anthocyanin molecules not found in the parents. The use of UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS was an efficient method to identify the anthocyanins present in the corona of Passiflora species. P. incarnata acquired its red flowers by suppression of the delphinidin pathway. The wide variety of anthocyanins found in the corona filaments of the P. ‘Lady Margaret’ interspecific hybrid indicated that it inherited the anthocyanidin pathways as well as the glycosylation pattern of both parent species.
Published Version
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