Profiling of the leaves and stems of Curcuma longa using LC-ESI-MS and HPLC analysis

Abstract

Curcuma longa is a plant belonging to the genus Curcuma and is distributed across various Asian regions. This plant is widely known for its rhizomes, which possess a variety of pharmacological properties. However, although the leaves and stems of this plant also contain several health-promoting secondary metabolites, very few studies have characterized these compounds. Therefore, our study sought to quantify the secondary metabolites from the leaves and stems of Curcuma longa L. (LSCL) using liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Our LC-ESI-MS analyses detected twenty-one phenolic compounds in the LSCL, among which fifteen compounds were detected via HPLC analysis. Four compounds, namely vanillic acid (0.129 mg/g), p-coumaric acid (0.431 mg/g), 4-methylcatechol (0.199 mg/g), and afzelin (0.074 mg/g) were then quantified. These findings suggest that LSCL is rich in secondary metabolites and holds potential as a valuable resource for the development of functional and nutritional supplements in the future. © The Korean Society for Applied Biological Chemistry 2023.