Planta Med 2013; 79 - PN26
DOI: 10.1055/s-0033-1348707

Bioactive and Marker Compounds from Two Edible Dark-Colored Myrciaria Fruits and the Synthesis of Jaboticabin for COPD Treatment

SB Wu 1, J Wu 2, Z Yin 2, J Zhang 2, C Long 3, EJ Kennelly 1 S Zheng 3*
  • 1Department of Biological Sciences, Lehman College, and The Graduate Center, The City University of New York, Bronx, New York, 10468
  • 2Department of Chemistry, Hunter College, The City University of New York, 10065, New York
  • 3College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Minzu University of China, Beijing 100081, China

Jaboticaba (Myrciaria cauliflora) and false jaboticaba (Myrciaria vexator) fruits are two pleasant-tasting, dark-colored fruits, native to Brazil. They are rich sources of bioactive phenolic compounds, including anthocyanins, flavonoids, phenolic acids, tannins, as well as less well-known polyphenols like depsides. Jaboticabin, a depside originally we identified from jaboticaba fruits, is being explored a treatment for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). These two Myciaria fruits are similar in morphology, but their taste profiles differ markedly. This study was focused on identifying the marker compounds between them using HPLC-PDA, LC-TOF-MS, combined with principal component analysis. As a result, cyanidin-3-O-glucoside was found as the major anthocyanin in Myrciaria fruits. Delphinidin-3-O-glucoside was found to be the marker compound for jaboticaba, while cyanidin-3-O-galactoside and cyanidin-3-O-arabinose were two marker compounds distinguishing false jaboticaba. In addition, two ellagitannins, iso-oenothein C and oenothein C, were isolated and identified from both of these fruits for the first time. Jaboticabin occurred in both fruits, and because of its potential to treat COPD, was synthesized in the laboratory for the first time. (This work was supported by NIH-NHLBI, grant 5SC1HL096016).