Phenolic profile of different Cichorium spinosum L. ecotypes

Cichorium spinosum L. is a native plant of the Mediterranean basin and can be found in Balearic Islands, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, and Spain, usually in coastal areas and plateaus of the mainland, and constitutes a very common ingredient of the so-called Mediterranean diet [1]. Phenolic compounds are secondary metabolites of plants with great importance for various physiological and morphological features, such as defense mechanisms, cell wall structure, proteins and enzymes and scavenging of free radicals, among others [2]. The aim of the present study was to identify phenolic compounds of different C. spinosum ecotypes from the eastern Mediterranean in order to find the best conditions in increasing these compounds. The studied ecotypes were commercial products obtained from retail supermarkets in Greece (samples 2 and 3); wild ecotypes collected in situ in the area of Velanidia, Greece (samples 4 and 5); and plants cultivated at the farm of the University of Thessaly (samples 1 and 6). The phenolic compounds were identified and quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to a diode array detector and a mass spectrometry using the electrospray ionization interface (HPLC-DAD-ESI/MS). Significant differences were observed among the various studied ecotypes in their phenolic compound content and profile, especially between wild and cultivated ecotypes. Wild ecotypes had lower content of total phenolic compounds than cultivated ones, whereas commercial products were very rich in flavonoids, especially in kaempferol-3-O-glucuronide, isorhamnetin-3-O-glucuronide and apigenin-O-glucuronide, in comparison to the other ecotypes (wild and cultivated). Commercial cultivation of C. spinosum should be encouraged since it ensures higher content of phenolic compounds, and according to the results of the present study valorisation of C. spinosum species has great potential since it could be used as a new alternative species in the food industry.FCT, Portugal and FEDER under Programme PT2020 for financial support to CIMO (UID/AGR/00690/2013), L. Barros contract, A. Fernandes (SFRH/BPD/114753/2016) and grateful to FEDER-Interreg España-Portugal programme for financial support through the project 0377_Iberphenol_6_E.