title: Carotenoid profiling in tubers of different potato (Solanum sp) cultivars: accumulation of carotenoids mediated by xanthophyll esterification.
abstract: The carotenoid profile of sixty potato cultivars (commercial, bred, old and native cultivars) has been characterised in order to provide information to be used in selective breeding programs directed to improve the nutritional value of this important staple food. Cultivars were segregated into three groups according to the major pigment in the carotenoid profile: violaxanthin (37 cultivars; especially those with higher carotenoid content), lutein (16 cultivars), and neoxanthin (7 cultivars). Other minor carotenoids were antheraxanthin, β-cryptoxanthin and β-carotene, while zeaxanthin was absent in all sample. The total carotenoid content ranged from 50.0 to 1552.0 μg/100 g dry wt, with an average value of about 435.3 μg/100 g dry wt. Sipancachi, Poluya and Chaucha native cultivars showed the highest carotenoid content (1020.0, 1478.2 and 1551.2 μg/100 g dry wt, respectively). Xanthophyll esters were present in most cultivars, mainly as diesterified forms, being observed a direct correlation between the carotenoid content and the esterified fraction, suggesting that the esterification process facilitates the accumulation of these lipophilic compounds within the plastids. Therefore, the presence of xanthophyll esters should be a phenotypic character to be included in the breeding studies, and more efforts should be dedicated to the understanding of the biochemical process leading to this structural modification of carotenoids in plants.
authors.affiliation: Grupo de Química y Bioquímica de Pigmentos, Departamento de Biotecnología de Alimentos, Instituto de la Grasa (CSIC), Av. Padre García Tejero, 4, 41012 Sevilla, Spain.
authors.forename: Rebeca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fernandez-Orozco
authors.forename: Lourdes
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gallardo-Guerrero
authors.forename: Dámaso
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hornero-Méndez
mesh_terms: D002338:Carotenoids / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D004951:Esterification; D035281:Plant Tubers / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D011198:Solanum tuberosum / Q000737:chemistry / Q000145:classification / Q000378:metabolism*; D024341:Xanthophylls / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D024341:Xanthophylls; D002338:Carotenoids
keywords: Breeding; Carotenoids; Lutein; Potato cultivars; Solanum; Xanthophyll esterification; Zeaxanthin