Profile of anthocyanins in purple vegetables commonly consumed in China and their relationship with antioxidant abilities

Fifteen commonly consumed purple vegetables were investigated for their total anthocyanins, anthocyanidins, profile of anthocyanins and their antioxidant abilities. The highest content of total anthocyanins was observed in red cabbage, followed by black carrot and red cowpea, with the content of 98.01, 60.98, and 47.01 mg center dot 100 g(-1), respectively. Totally, 50 anthocyanins were identified with 36 acylated and 14 nonacylated anthocyanins. Cyanidin was the most widely distributed aglycone which was found in 26 anthocyanins. Black carrot had the most abundant composition of anthocyanins, followed by hyacinth bean, red cabbage, and purple yam, with the number of 16, 14, 13, 12, respectively. Among the purple vegetables, antioxidant ability of black carrot was assumed to be the best, followed by red cabbage, red cowpea, and purple cauliflower. Basically, purple vegetables with high contents of total anthocyanins had high antioxidant ability, especially for FRAP and DPPH assay. This work provides the profile of anthocyanins in purple vegetables and how they might relate to antioxidant abilities, which is important for the development of functional food.

Automated summary

This study investigated fifteen commonly consumed purple vegetables for their total anthocyanins, anthocyanidins, profile of anthocyanins, and antioxidant abilities. The results showed that black carrot had the highest antioxidant ability, followed by red cabbage, red cowpea, and purple cauliflower. Purple vegetables with high contents of total anthocyanins exhibited high antioxidant abilities.