Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.) vegetative parts as an unconventional source of lipophilic antioxidants

The profile of lipophilic antioxidants in different vegetative parts (leaves, shoots, buds and berries) was studied in sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.) male and female plants collected in the end of spring. Five lipophilic compounds, i.e. three tocopherol homologues (α, β and γ), plastochromanol-8 and β-carotene, were identified in each vegetative part of male and female sea buckthorn plants at the following concentrations: 7.25–35.41, 0.21–2.43, 0.41–1.51, 0.19–1.79 and 4.43–24.57 mg/100 g dry weight basis. Additionally, significant amounts of α-tocotrienol (1.99 mg/100 g dry weight basis) were detected in buds. The α-tocopherol and β-carotene were predominant lipophilic antioxidants in each vegetative part, accounting for 78.3–97.0% of identified compounds. The greatest amounts of lipophilic antioxidants were found in leaves, especially of female plants. Nevertheless, apart from leaves, also shoots of plants of both sexes seem to be a good source of α-tocopherol and β-carotene

Tocopherol and tocotrienol contents in the sea buckthorn berry beverages in Baltic countries: Impact of the cultivar

Introduction. The soft part of the sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.) berry is not only rich in juice but also in oil, a valuable source of tocopherols and tocotrienols (vitamin E). Therefore, sea buckthorn beverages are becoming increasingly popular in the world market, and may be considered as a valuable source of vitamin E in the daily diet. Materials and methods. The contents of tocopherol and tocotrienol homologues in 28 different commercially available sea buckthorn beverages (nectars and juices) from three Baltic countries, and juice samples obtained in lab-scale from 6 cultivars of the berries, were studied via RP-HPLC/FLD and a DPPH assay. Results and discussion. A wide range for the total tocochromanol concentration in both commercially available nectars (0.25 to 26.33 mg L-1) and juices (12.63 to 75.90 mg L-1) of sea buckthorn were noted. The profile of tocopherol (T) homologues in the sea buckthorn beverages was as follows: α-T (85%), β-T (6.2%), γ-T (2.8%) and δ-T (0.6%). Tocotrienol (T3) homologues constituted only a minor part: α-T3 (1.8%), β-T3 (0.3%), γ-T3 (2.4%) and δ-T3 (1.0%). The total tocochromanol content in the sea buckthorn juice prepared in lab-scale from 6 different cultivars was the lowest for cv. Prozrachnaya and the highest for ‘Avgustinka’ (39.52 and 73.08 mg L-1, respectively). A significant correlation (r = 0.968, P <0.00001) between the total content of tocochromanols in the sea buckthorn beverages and scavenging of free radical DPPH was found. Conclusion. Commercially available sea buckthorn berry beverages had a wide range of the tocochromanol content (0.25–75.90 mg L-1). The juices were found to be the richest source of tocochromanols out of all the beverages studied, mainly in the form of α-T (85%). The concentration of tocochromanols in the sea buckthorn beverages was strongly associated with the antioxidant activity of tested samples determined by the DPPH assay

Extracts of Japanese Quince Seeds - Potential Source of Antioxidants

Japanese quince (Chaenomeles japonica) is a minor fruit crop in Latvia and Lithuania; it is used for production of juice, aroma and fruit fibers. The seeds are by-products of food processing that could be used further for different purposes. The seeds of Japanese quince contain about 10 to 20% of oil. The composition of this oil is quite unique: nearly 90% of it is formed by two fatty acids - linoleic (52.4%) and oleic (35.6%). We have also found out that the extracts of Japanese quince seeds can be used to improve stability of vegetable oils; 10% additive of ground seeds to rapeseed oil and 5% additive to hempseed oil can increase the oxidative stability of these oils about 2.0 and 1.6 times, respectively. Unfortunately, the seeds of Japanese quince contain also amygdalin - toxic cianogenic glycoside. Due to this compound the usage of seeds of Japanese quince are very limited, especially in case of their hydrophilic extracts. Our research was focused on hydrophilic extracts of seeds in order to find out both the best method to prepare polyphenols rich extracts, as well as to determine the amount of toxic amygdalin in the ethanol/water extracts of seeds and in the extracted seeds. We have found out that the largest amount of total polyphenols can be obtained when whole seeds are extracted with the mixture of ethanol and water under reflux

Tocochromanols composition in kernels recovered from different apricot varieties: RP-HPLC/FLD and RP-UPLC-ESI/MSⁿ study

<div><p>Composition of tocochromanols in kernels recovered from 16 different apricot varieties (<i>Prunus armeniaca</i> L.) was studied. Three tocopherol (T) homologues, namely α, γ and δ, were quantified in all tested samples by an RP-HPLC/FLD method. The γ-T was the main tocopherol homologue identified in apricot kernels and constituted approximately 93% of total detected tocopherols. The RP-UPLC-ESI/MSⁿ method detected trace amounts of two tocotrienol homologues α and γ in the apricot kernels. The concentration of individual tocopherol homologues in kernels of different apricots varieties, expressed in mg/100 g dwb, was in the following range: 1.38–4.41 (α-T), 42.48–73.27 (γ-T) and 0.77–2.09 (δ-T). Moreover, the ratio between individual tocopherol homologues α:γ:δ was nearly constant in all varieties and amounted to approximately 2:39:1.</p></div

Identification and Full Genome Analysis of the First Putative Virus of Sea Buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.)

The agricultural importance of sea buckthorn (SBT; Hippophae rhamnoides L.) is rapidly increasing. Several bacterial and fungal pathogens infecting SBT have been identified and characterized; however, the viral pathogens are not yet known. In this study, we identified, isolated, and sequenced a virus from a wild plantation of SBT for the first time. Sequence analysis of the obtained viral genome revealed high similarity with several viruses belonging to the genus Marafivirus. The genome of the new virus is 6989 nucleotides (nt) in length according to 5&prime;, 3&prime; RACE (without polyA-tail), with 5&prime; and 3&prime; 133 and 109 nt long untranslated regions, respectively. The viral genome encoded two open reading frames (ORFs). ORF1 encoded a polyprotein of 1954 amino acids with the characteristic marafivirus non-structural protein domains&mdash;methyltransferase, Salyut domain, papain-like cysteine protease, helicase, and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase. ORF1 was separated from ORF2 by 6 nt, encoding the coat protein (CP) with typical signatures of minor and major forms. Both CP forms were cloned and expressed in a bacterial expression system. Only the major CP was able to self-assemble into 30 nm virus-like particles that resembled the native virus, thus demonstrating that minor CP is not essential for virion assembly