HomeNutritionAnthocyanins, Carotenoids and Chlorophylls in Edible Plant Leaves Unveiled by Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Anthocyanins, Carotenoids and Chlorophylls in Edible Plant Leaves Unveiled by Tandem Mass Spectrometry

March 25, 2024

Foods. 2022 Jun 28;11(13):1924. doi: 10.3390/foods11131924.

ABSTRACT

Natural pigments are a quite relevant group of molecules that are widely distributed in nature, possessing a significant role in our daily lives. Besides their colors, natural pigments are currently recognized as having relevant biological properties associated with health benefits, such as anti-tumor, anti-atherogenicity, anti-aging and anti-inflammatory activities, among others. Some of these compounds are easily associated with specific fruits (such as blueberries with anthocyanins, red pitaya with betalain or tomato with lycopene), vegetables (carrots with carotenoids), plant leaves (chlorophylls in green leaves or carotenoids in yellow and red autumn leaves) and even the muscle tissue of vertebrates (such as myoglobin). Despite being less popular as natural pigment sources, edible plant leaves possess a high variety of chlorophylls, as well as a high variety of carotenoids and anthocyanins. The purpose of this review is to critically analyze the whole workflow employed to identify and quantify the most common natural pigments (anthocyanin, carotenoids and chlorophylls) in edible plant leaves using tandem mass spectrometry. Across the literature there, is a lack of consistency in the methods used to extract and analyze these compounds, and this review aims to surpass this issue. Additionally, mass spectrometry has stood out in the context of metabolomics, currently being a widely employed technique in this field. For the three pigments classes, the following steps will be scrutinized: (i) sample pre-preparation, including the solvents and extraction conditions; (ii) details of the chromatographic separation and mass spectrometry experiments (iii) pigment identification and quantification.

PMID:35804744 | DOI:10.3390/foods11131924

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About The Author

Patrick Blanchard MD

Meet Dr. Blanchard Dr. Blanchard’s medical practice is an embodiment of Integrative health which brings conventional and complementary approaches together in a coordinated way. Conveniently located in sunny Florida and over the internet with ValiseMD’s secure HIPPA compliant telXmed servers. Since 1994, patients with a wide range of challenging medical problems have achieved optimum health using the best of natural medicine, judiciously combined with high-tech innovations. Breakthroughs are often achieved even after patients have consulted mainstream specialists and holistic practitioners. Dr. Blanchard is founder and CEO of ValiseMD, Inc. He is board certified in Family Medicine since 1994 and awarded Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians in 2001. He received the ‘Teacher of the Year’ award from the University of Kansas School of Medicine at completion of his residency in Family Medicine. He completed a fellowship at Wake Forest University in the field of vascular neurosonology. He holds a medical patent in the field of Gastroenterology. He holds an unrestricted license to practice medicine and surgery in Florida. He started his medical career as a Emergency Medical Technician, then as a Paramedic and later a Medical Doctor.