Abstract
To elucidate the effects of cultivar and harvest month on the phenolic content and antioxidant activity of mulberry leaves, four major phenolics, including chlorogenic acid (ChA), benzoic acid (BeA), rutin (Rut) and astragalin (Ast), were quantified using an HPLC-UV method. Leaves from six mulberry cultivars, collected from April to October, were analyzed. The antioxidant activity of mulberry leaves was assessed by ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), hydroxyl radical scavenging activity (HSA) and superoxide radical scavenging activity (SSA) assays. The results showed that the total values of the four phenolic compounds ranged from 2.3 dry weight (DW) to 4.2 mg/g DW, with ChA being the major compound. The mean total phenol (TP) content of the six cultivars ranged from 30.4 equivalents (GAE) mg/g DW to 44.7 GAE mg/g DW. Mulberry leaves harvested in May had the highest TP content. Moreover, the antioxidant activities of mulberry leaves harvested from April to October differed noticeably. In general, Kq 10 and May were considered to be a better cultivar and harvest month concerning phenolic content and antioxidant activity, respectively.
Highlights
China is the main producer of mulberry, an economically important plant used for sericulture
It is known that genetics, environment and agricultural practices greatly affect the phytochemical profiles of plants; there is limited evidence of the impact of these factors on the bioactivities of mulberry leaves
The data showed that the Rut content (1.20 ± 0.4 mg/g dry weight (DW)) in Kangqing 10 (Kq 10) and the benzoic acid (BeA) content (0.8 ± 0.2 mg/g DW)
Summary
China is the main producer of mulberry (genus Morus), an economically important plant used for sericulture. Phenolics with strong antioxidant activity toward reactive oxygen species (ROS) are thought to contribute to the biological activities of the leaves [4,5]. Some phenolics, such as rutin, quercetin and isoquercetin, as well as some flavonoids, have been identified in mulberry leaves [6], there is currently little information on the influence of cultivar and harvest month on phenolic content and antioxidant activity. We investigated the content of four major phenolic compounds (chlorogenic acid, benzoic acid, rutin and astragalin), as well as the antioxidant activity in mulberry leaves, in order to determine the influence of cultivar and harvest month on these variables
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