Characterization of phenolic substances and antioxidant properties of food soybeans grown in the North Dakota-Minnesota region

Phenolic profiles and antioxidant properties of a total of 30 soybean samples, including 27 grown in the North Dakota-Minnesota region and three soybeans from the other regions, were investigated. The total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoids content (TFC), phenolic acids, flavonols, anthocyanins, and isoflavones were quantified. Antioxidant properties of soybean extracts were assessed using 2-diphenyl-1-picryhydrazyl free radical scavenging activity (DPPH), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) methods. Results showed that black soybean cultivars possessed significantly higher TPC, TFC, DPPH, FRAP, and ORAC values than all yellow soybean cultivars. However, black soybean cultivars did not exhibit significantly higher individual phenolic contents (except for anthocyanins), such as phenolic acids and isoflavones, than the yellow soybean cultivars. The isoflavone profiles of North Dakota soybean cultivars were similar to those of South Dakota, but average values of total isoflavone (TI) contents were higher than soybeans grown in the other states and Korea and Japan according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Iowa State University Database on the isoflavone contents of foods. Correlation assays showed that TPC, TI, total phenolic acids, daidzin, genistin, malonyldaidzin, daidzein, genistein, and trans-cinnamic acid significantly (r = 0.73, 0.62, 0.49, 0.68, 0.59, 0.59, 0.56, 0.47, and 0.76, respectively, p < 0.0001) correlated with ORAC values of yellow soybeans. Both isoflavones and phenolic acids contributed to the ORAC values of yellow soybeans. These data suggest that some selected soybean cultivars may be used as high-quality food-grade soybeans for providing high phenolic phytochemicals and antioxidant activities.