Tocochromanols composition in seeds recovered from different pear cultivars: RP-HPLC/FLD and RP-UPLC-ESI/MSn study

Composition of tocochromanols was studied in seeds recovered from eight pear (Pyrus communis L.) cultivars, six dessert and two interstock, grown in a single environment. Four tocopherol (T) homologues, namely alpha, beta, gamma and delta, were quantified in all tested samples by RP-HPLC/FLD method. The RP-UPLC-ESI/MSn analyses confirmed the identity obtained by the RP-HPLC/FLD method and the additional trace amounts of two tocotrienol homologues, alpha and gamma, were detected. The concentration of individual tocopherol homologues in seeds of different pear cultivars, expressed in mg/100 g dry weight basis, dw, was in the follow range: 4.00-5.98 (alpha-T), 0.11-0.31 (beta-T), 32.06-42.07 (gamma-T) and 0.43-1.21 (delta-T). The gamma-T was the main tocopherol homologue identified in pear seeds and constituted approximately 87% of the total detected tocochromanols. Only minor variation of the ratio of individual tocopherol homologues (alpha, beta, gamma and delta; 31:1:234:5) was observed in all studied samples. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.