近年来,食品和相关行业对新型天然成分的搜索引发了广泛的研究,旨在发现功能分子的新来源。山茶,传统上被称为观赏植物,由于其具有潜在工业应用的多种生物活性化合物而受到关注。虽然日本花是可食用的,他们的植物化学特征尚未得到彻底调查。在这项研究中,通过HPLC-ESI-QQQ-MS/MS方法筛选酚类成分,总共揭示了36种化合物,包括花青素,类姜黄素,二氢查耳酮,二氢黄酮醇,黄酮醇,黄酮,羟基苯甲酸,羟基肉桂酸,异黄酮,二苯乙烯,和酪氨酸。在提取分析之后,它们的生物活性通过体外抗氧化剂来评估,抗菌,细胞毒性,和神经保护活动。结果表明,根据Pearson的相关性分析,酚类化合物与所有测试的生物活性具有多方面的高度相关性,揭示了C.japonica花作为有希望的营养品来源的潜力。总的来说,这些发现为来自不同未开发品种的C.japonica花的增值提供了见解,从而使其工业成果多样化。
In recent years, the search for novel natural-based ingredients by food and related industries has sparked extensive research aimed at discovering new sources of functional molecules. Camellia japonica, traditionally known as an ornamental plant, has gained attention due to its diverse array of bioactive compounds with potential industrial applications. Although C. japonica flowers are edible, their phytochemical profile has not been thoroughly investigated. In this study, a phenolic profile screening through an HPLC-ESI-QQQ-MS/MS approach was applied to C. japonica flower extracts, revealing a total of 36 compounds, including anthocyanins, curcuminoids, dihydrochalcones, dihydroflavonols, flavonols, flavones, hydroxybenzoic acids, hydroxycinnamic acids, isoflavonoids, stilbenes, and tyrosols. Following extract profiling, their bioactivity was assessed by means of in vitro antioxidant, antimicrobial, cytotoxic, and neuroprotective activities. The results showed a multifaceted high correlation of phenolic compounds with all the tested bioactivities according to Pearson\'s correlation analysis, unraveling the potential of C. japonica flowers as promising sources of nutraceuticals. Overall, these findings provide insight into the
valorization of C. japonica flowers from different unexplored cultivars thus diversifying their industrial outcome.