Nutritional Quality, and Bioactive Components of Aromatic Plants

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Phytochemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2024) | Viewed by 2163

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Department of Vegetable and Herb Crops, Faculty of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Doświadczalna 50A, 20-280 Lublin, Poland
Interests: spice and medicinal plants; ontogenetic and environmental variability; cultivation; yield quality; essential oil; biological activity
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aromatic plants are a source of valuable raw materials used in food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical production, as well as various therapies. These valuable plant species are still found in natural habitats, but most of the high-quality raw material is provided by cultivation. Both sources of aromatic herbs are important for production and consumers. The task of cultivation is to provide the market with a product of high quality, rich in nutrients and bioactive compounds, safe for the potential consumer and with significant benefits. In the case of aromatic plants, one of the main groups of actinic substances are volatile compounds. The content and activity of these components is variable and dependent on several factors. Similarly, the level of nutrients (proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals) depends on various factors, depending to a greater or lesser extent on the grower or picker. In this regard, practical knowledge is based on important scientific information, based on the results of experiments. Increasing the level of nutrients and bioactive substances based on the principles of good agricultural practice (GAP) makes it possible to obtain a raw material safe for use with health-promoting effects.

This Special Issue invites researchers to submit papers focusing on aromatic plants, their nutritional and health-promoting qualities, innovative articles and reviews on the biology, requirements, cultivation and habitat of natural aromatic plants used in the production of medicines, cosmetics and spices, their biological properties, possibilities and safety of use, etc.

Prof. Dr. Renata Nurzyńska-Wierdak
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • aromatic plants
  • natural habitats of aromatic plants
  • volatile plant compounds (content, composition, activity, variability)
  • nutrients (variability)
  • impact of variability factors (size and quality of the raw material yield)
  • plant growth and development
  • cultivation of aromatic plants
  • plant nutrition (irrigation and fertilization)
  • cover crops, organic farming
  • harvesting techniques (cultivation, natural state)
  • produce quality
  • nutraceutical, aromatic and medicinal properties
  • primary and secondary metabolism
  • pre- and post-harvest factors
  • plant-based health-promoting products

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 1957 KiB  
Article
White-Seeded Culinary Poppy (Papaver somniferum L.) Se Biofortification: Oil Quality, Fatty Acid Profile, and Seed Yield
by Ivana Varga, Tihomir Moslavac, Ivana Flanjak, Dario Iljkić, Milan Pospišil, Zdenko Lončarić and Manda Antunović
Plants 2025, 14(1), 95; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14010095 - 31 Dec 2024
Viewed by 888
Abstract
The culinary poppy (Papaver somniferum L.) has been used for centuries in everyday diets, especially for food, but also as a non-food source of health-promoting ingredients. In the present study, a field trial was set with white-seeded poppy varieties collected from farmers [...] Read more.
The culinary poppy (Papaver somniferum L.) has been used for centuries in everyday diets, especially for food, but also as a non-food source of health-promoting ingredients. In the present study, a field trial was set with white-seeded poppy varieties collected from farmers in Croatia. The poppies were sown as a winter crop. Selenium biofortification was applied using different selenium sources, such as selenite, SeO32−, and selenate SeO42−. In the flowering stage, biofortification was carried out as follows: (1) Se-0: control; (2) SeO3_30: 30 g ha−1; (3) SeO3_60: 60 g ha−1; (4) SeO4_30: 30 g ha−1; and (5) SeO4_60: 60 g ha−1. Plants formed an average of four capsules per plant, with an average seed mass per capsule of 3.52 g. The seed yield varied from 0.91 (SeO3_30) to 1.26 t ha−1 (SeO4_30). The cold-pressed oil was characterized as good-quality since the average water content was 0.38%, insoluble impurities consisted of 0.013%, iodine number value was 135.81 g, I2 was 100 g−1, and saponification number was 188.51 mg KOH g−1, and it was on average 0.93% free fatty acids. Selenium biofortification had a significant (p ≤ 0.05) impact on Se accumulation in the seeds. Thus, the selenite form increased Se content in the seeds by about 7% compared to the control, whereas for the (4) SeO4_30 treatment, the increase was about 50%, and for (5) SeO4_60, it was even higher, about 91% compared to the control treatment. The highest content of fatty acids in the cold-pressed oil was determined for linoleic (76.31%), oleic (13.49), and palmitic (7.86%) acids. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutritional Quality, and Bioactive Components of Aromatic Plants)
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11 pages, 396 KiB  
Article
Study on Bioactive Components of Aromatic Cynanchum thesioides (Freyn) K. Schum by Solvent Fractionation
by Tao Lyu and Woonjung Kim
Plants 2024, 13(22), 3123; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13223123 - 6 Nov 2024
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Abstract
This study evaluated the antioxidant activity of the methanol extract from aromatic Cynanchum thesioides (Freyn) K. Schum. by fractionating it with different solvents, aiming to provide theoretical evidence for the development of products related to aromatic Cynanchum thesioides (Freyn) K. Schum. The yield [...] Read more.
This study evaluated the antioxidant activity of the methanol extract from aromatic Cynanchum thesioides (Freyn) K. Schum. by fractionating it with different solvents, aiming to provide theoretical evidence for the development of products related to aromatic Cynanchum thesioides (Freyn) K. Schum. The yield of the methanol extract was 13.33%, with the water fraction showing the highest yield, followed by n-hexane, n-butanol, dichloromethane, and ethyl acetate. Among these fractions, the ethyl acetate fraction showed the highest antioxidant activity, as indicated by total polyphenol content and ABTS radical scavenging activity. The DPPH radical scavenging activity, reducing power, and SOD-like activity measurements showed no significant difference between the ethyl acetate and n-butanol fractions, as both showed the highest radical scavenging activity. In the FRAP activity measurement, the n-butanol fraction ranked behind the ethyl acetate and dichloromethane fractions in terms of antioxidant activity. Although the ethyl acetate fraction showed the highest antioxidant activity, its yield was only 1.29%, making it unsuitable for product production considering productivity and economy. However, the n-butanol fraction showed overall high antioxidant activity and was approximately four times more abundant, with a yield of 5.80% compared to the ethyl acetate fraction. Consequently, considering both productivity and economy, the n-butanol fraction is considered suitable for product development and production. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutritional Quality, and Bioactive Components of Aromatic Plants)
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