Chinese Bulletin of Botany ›› 2011, Vol. 46 ›› Issue (2): 129-137.DOI: 10.3724/SP.J.1259.2011.00129

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Recent Advances in Metabolic Products of Flavonoids in Punica granatum

Ancheng Liu1, Hui Li2,3, Liangsheng Wang2*, Changmin Pang1, Weiguang Wei1   

  1. 1Xi’an Botanical Garden of Shannxi Province, Xi'an 710061, China

    2Beijing Botanical Garden, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100093, China

    3Graduate University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
  • Received:2010-08-31 Revised:2010-12-16 Online:2011-03-01 Published:2011-05-09
  • Contact: Liangsheng Wang

Abstract: Pomegranate (Punica granatum) is a cultivated fruit with a long history and great nutritional value. China has 8 major pomegranate-producing areas, including Xingyang and Kaifeng cities, Henan province; Lintong county, Shaanxi province; Zaozhuang county, Shandong province; Huaiyuan county, Anhui province; Huili county, Sichuan province; Mengzi county, Yunnan province; and Kargilik county, Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region. In total, 33 flavonoids have been detected from pomegranate fruit juice, pericarp and foliage; these include 6 flavanols, 1 flavanone glycoside, 2 flavonols, 3 flavonol glycosides, 3 flavones, 5 flavone glycosides, 1 flavanonol glycoside, 3 anthocyanidins and 9 anthocyanins. These flavonoid compounds are widely used in the health food and medicinal industries. This paper summarizes the recent progress in the constitution, content, detection methods and pharmacological studies of flavonoids in the fruit, leaf and petal of P. granatum. To promote deeper research and use of the active components and for functional characterization for cancer prevention, future study should focus on the rapid analysis, semi-preparation and/or preparation separation, and quantitative analysis of flavonoids in fruits; germplasm resource evaluation; and identification of active components in leaves and flowers of pomegranate.

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