Chemical Constituents and Health Benefits of Four Chinese Plum Species

Abstract

Prunus is a large genus in the Rosaceae family of flowering plants, comprising over 340 species inhabiting variable landscapes in the world. Over 500 listed phytochemicals have been isolated from this single genus so far. The present study focused four Chinese Prunus species, viz., Prunus cerasifera, Prunus domestica, Prunus salicina, and Prunus spinosa, due to their uses, demand, nutritional value, medicinal importance, and diverse biological potential. The current review article highlights the details about the active phytochemicals and various pharmacological activities already reported. Almost 212 compounds, the majority of which are flavonoids, phenolic acids, anthocyanins, and their derivatives, which have been isolated from these four Prunus species fall in different categories and are helpful to evade chronic oxidative stress-mediated diseases. A huge variation exists in the total phytochemicals composition in different Prunus species, making these species to have different biological activities in multiple disease conditions, and even the same variety growing under different edaphic conditions may have different antioxidant capacities. It is suggested to perform extensive and indepth studies to find new phytochemicals from these four Chinese Prunus species which could boost the local industry to fulfill the increasing demands.

Evaluation of Polyphenolic Content and Potential Antioxidant Activity of Japanese Cultivars of Peaches, Prunes, and Plums Based on Reversed- and Normal-Phase HPLC and Principal Component Analyses

“…In peaches, PB1 and CAT were the main flavan-3-ols and procyanidins, and the proportions of total flavan-3-ols and procyanidins in prunes ranged from 15.4 to 28.6% and from 6.4 to 19.0%, respectively. Interestingly, an unknown flavan-3ol/procyanidin (17), which was detected with FLD, was the main flavan-3-ols/procyanidins in prunes as well as a small amount in plums. Previous studies have reported that gallocatechin and epigallocatechin are stone fruits polyphenols.…”

“…Several studies have revealed various subclasses of hydroxycinnamic acids, flavonols, anthocyanins, flavan-3-ols, and procyanidins in stone fruits including peaches, prunes, and plums. − In general, reversed-phase HPLC has been used for analyzing polyphenols with an absorption wavelength of 280 nm. However, this method facilitates only limited separation of polyphenols, because overlapping peaks are observed on the chromatogram owing to the presence of many polyphenols in stone fruits .…”

“…Statistical comparisons between samples were performed with one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Tukey's test.Different letters indicate statistically differences at p < 0.01. b Individual polyphenols were analyzed by reversed-phase HPLC (see the Materials and Methods section). c Unknown flavan-3-ol/procyanidin(17) is calculated as catechin. d Flavan-3-ols/procyanidins according to the DP were measured using normal phase HPLC with FLD.…”

Nutritional and Bioactive Characterization of Sicana odorifera Naudim Vell. Seeds By-Products and Its Potential Hepatoprotective Properties in Swiss Albino Mice

“…Regarding quercetin dimethyl ether and quercetin rhamnoside, both compounds were detected in mouse melon ( Cucumis melo ) seeds’ extract, and the latter was also found in spiney gourd ( Momordica dioica ) seeds [ 43 ]. Finally, quercetin pentoside rhamnoside was previously observed in Chinese Plums ( Prunus domestica ) and has been described for the first time in S. odorifera seeds [ 41 , 62 ]. The cucurbitacins boeticol and karounidiol dibenzoate were previously isolated from the Colombian S. odorifera seeds, in agreement with our results [ 14 ].…”

Phenotypic Variation and Peel Contribution to Fruit Antioxidant Contents in European and Japanese Plums

“…They are also potentially valuable for the development and production of dietary supplements and functional food enriched with biologically active compounds [ 1 ]. The consumption of plum is related to osteoporosis prevention, improving memory, and has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and laxative effects [ 2 ].…”