Leontopodic acid in edelweiss related species

In earlier times Edelweiss Leontopodium alpinum Cass. had been known under several names such as Gnaphalium leontopodium, Gnaphalium alpinum, Filago alpina, Filago leonto-podium and Antennaria leontopodium. In 1822 Alexandre de Cassini assigned Edelweiss to the genus Leontopodium and named it Leontopodium alpinum.

In 2005 Schwaiger et al identified and elucidated the structure of unique caffeoyl-D-glucaric acid derivatives leontopodic acid and leontopodic acid B in Edelweiss (L. alpinum) and other species from the genus Leontopodium. In 2010, Blöch et al investigated and published the phylogenetic relationship of species of the genus Leontopodium with those of Gnaphalium, Filago, Antennaria and others. In the Swiss alps and the Val d' Aoste (Italy), we collected plant species related to Edelweiss in order to analyze them for the presence of leontopodic acids and to assess the chemosystematic significance of those compounds. Leontopodic acids were present in most species analyzed. Our data show a borderline between the genera containing leontopodic acids and those that do not. Leontopodic acids therefore appear to be interesting chemosystematic markers for the genera Leontopodium, Gnaphalium, Filago and Antennaria. The combination of phytochemical analysis and molecular phylogeny relationships is an interesting tool for the discovery of bioactive natural products in commercially interesting plants.