Spatial variation of volatile organic compounds and antioxidant activity of turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) essential oils harvested from four provinces of China

• Published in: Current research in food science 2021-01, Vol.4, p.882-890
• Main Authors: Qiang, Yueyue, Si, Ruiru, Tan, Suo, Wei, Hang, Huang, Biao, Wu, Miaohong, Shi, Mengzhu, Fang, Ling, Fu, Jianwei, Zeng, Shaoxiao
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Antioxidant activity; Curcuma longa L; DPPH; HS-SPME-GC-MS; Turmeric essential oils (TEOs)
• ISSN: 2665-9271; 2665-9271
• DOI: 10.1016/j.crfs.2021.11.002

The objective of this study was to investigate the spatial variation of volatile organic compounds and antioxidant activity of turmeric essential oils (TEOs) harvested from four provinces of China. The major chemical components of these TEOs were analyzed using headspace solid-phase micro-extraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. More than forty volatile organic compounds in TEOs were identified, which accounted for 82.09–93.64% of the oil components. The relative abundances of the main volatile organic compounds in TEOs at the genus level were visualized by a heat map. The antioxidant activity of the TEOs of five different origins was characterized by the DPPH free radical scavenging activity, in which the antioxidant activity of the TEOs from Guangxi was superior to those of other sources. Furthermore, the IC50 values of the antioxidants TEOs collected from Guangxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Changting, and Liancheng were 33.30, 42.5, 35.22, 63.27, and 39.96 mg/mL, respectively, which indicated the excellent free radical scavenging activity of those TEOs. Therefore, the TEOs might be considered as a natural antioxidant with potential applications in food and pharmaceutical industries. [Display omitted] •Turmeric essential oils stemmed from four provinces of China were investigated.•Multivariate analysis of volatile organic compounds in TEOs was performed.•The major components of volatile organic compounds exhibited a spatial variation.•Antioxidant activity of turmeric essential oils demonstrated a spatial variation.•TEOs of Guangxi had a superior antioxidant activity to those of other origins.