AUTHOR=Moyo Mack , Amoo Stephen O. , Aremu Adeyemi O. , Gruz Jiri , Šubrtová Michaela , Jarošová Monika , Tarkowski Petr , Doležal Karel 

TITLE=Determination of Mineral Constituents, Phytochemicals and Antioxidant Qualities of Cleome gynandra, Compared to Brassica oleracea and Beta vulgaris

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Chemistry

VOLUME=5

YEAR=2018

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/chemistry/articles/10.3389/fchem.2017.00128

DOI=10.3389/fchem.2017.00128

ISSN=2296-2646

ABSTRACT=<p>The study compared mineral, chemical and antioxidant qualities of <italic>Cleome gynandra</italic>, a wild leafy vegetable, with two widely consumed commercial vegetables, <italic>Brassica oleracea</italic> and <italic>Beta vulgaris</italic>. Mineral nutrients were quantified with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), phenolic compounds using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to a mass spectrometer (UHPLC-MS) and β-carotene and vitamin C using high performance liquid chromatography with a photodiode array detector (HPLC-PDA). The antioxidant potential was evaluated using 2,2–diphenyl−1–picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) and oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assays. <italic>Cleome gynandra</italic> had highest concentrations of phosphorus, potassium, calcium, iron, zinc, ascorbic acid, total phenolics, and flavonoids; whereas sodium, magnesium, manganese, copper and β-carotene were higher for <italic>B. vulgaris</italic>. The significantly higher antioxidant activity (<italic>P</italic> ≤ 0.05) exhibited by <italic>C. gynandra</italic> in comparison to the two commercial vegetables may be due to its significantly high levels of vitamin C and phenolic acids. These findings on the mineral, chemical and antioxidant properties of <italic>C. gynandra</italic> provide compelling scientific evidence of its potential in adding diversity to the diet and contributing toward the daily nutritional requirements of millions of people for food and nutritional security.</p>