Pigments content in different processed edible wild plants

Abstract

Natural colours of wild plants are similar to artificial pigments, for example: β-carotene and chlorophyll. The aim of research was to investigate the effect of drying or freezing on the colour intensity and pigments content in leaves of edible wild plants-stinging nettle (Urtica dioica L.), common goutweed (Aegopodium podagraria L.), dandelion (Taraxacum officinale L.) and chickweed (Stellaria media L.) grown in early spring in Latvia. Samples were gather in May 2018. Pigments (total chlorophylls, chlorophyll a, b and total carotenoids) content in the ethanol extracts of fresh, frozen and dried leaves was analysed with spectrophotometer, but the colour was measured in CIE L*a*b* system. The experimental results showed significantly higher content of total chlorophylls and carotenoids in fresh (1.64±0.14 and 0.81±0.02 mg g-1 DW) and frozen (2.08±0.12 and 0.94±0.05 mg g-1 DW) nettle leaves. Freezing process stimulates the higher amount of pigments from all analysed plants. It was observed, that the content of pigments decreased about for three times after drying process. Chlorophyll a/b was higher in goutweed leaves independently of processing. The obtained results demonstrate that the significant differences were found between fresh, frozen and dried plant leaves colour components L*a*b*.

Stellaria media Linn.: A comprehensive review highlights the nutritional, phytochemistry, and pharmacological activities

“…and carotenoids in fresh, frozen, and dried forms (52). The composition of amino acids is listed in Table 2 and important dietary minerals are mentioned in Table 3.…”

Nettle Cultivation Practices—From Open Field to Modern Hydroponics: A Case Study of Specialized Metabolites

“…The current trend among consumers is to pay more attention to a balanced diet and the consumption of wild leafy plants, as they are recognized as a source of a high content of phytonutrients [1][2][3][4], which play an important role in the prevention of many chronic diseases [5]. One of these wild edible species is stinging nettle (Urtica dioica L.), which has been known since ancient times for its medicinal value as a herbal remedy for the treatment of numerous health problems [3,[6][7][8].…”

“…The phytochemical profile of nettle leaves can be divided into several categories: terpenoids, chlorophylls and carotenoids, fatty acids, polyphenolic acids and compounds, essential amino acids, vitamins, tannins, carbohydrates, sterols, polysaccharides, isolectins and minerals [10,14,15]. According to various studies [1][2][3]16,17], the presence of chemical components in plants is variable, of inconsistent quality and depends on many abiotic, biotic and anthropological factors as well as on the conditions of raw material storage. Phytochemicals, i.e., SM are products of various metabolic pathways whose synthesis is directly influenced by these factors.…”

Agroekoloģisko faktoru ietekme uz reti audzētu dārzeņu ražu un kvalitāti = Influence of agroecological factors on the yield and quality of rarely-grown vegetables

“…Salīdzinot pētījumā iegūtos rezultātus ar citu autoru pētījumiem, kas veikti Latvijā, ir ļoti līdzīgi rezultāti un tendences hlorofila satura mērījumos nātrēm. Latvijā augošo ēdamo ārstniecības augu lapās pavasara sākumā augstākais hlorofilu saturs (164 mg 100 g -1 svaigas masas) bija jaunajās nātru lapās salīdzinājumā ar pieneņu, podagras gārsu un parasto virzu (Ozola, Augspole, Duma, 2019). Serbijā veiktos pētījumos nātru ekstraktā hlorofils bija noteikts 240 mg 100 g -1 (Durovič et al, 2017).…”