Phenolic finger-print in wild growing pomegranate fruits from Azerbaijan

The demand for pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) juices is increasingworldwide due to its documented healthpromotingeffects which likelyderive from phenolic compounds. This study reports the phenolic compositionof the juices obtained from eight wildgrowingpomegranate accessions collectedin eight areas of Azerbaijan, characterized by different climate and soil composition.The anthocyanins found in all the accessions were cyaniding derivativesand pelargonidin derivatives, while only two accessions contained alsodelphinidin3,5Odiglucoside.The main hydrolysable tannins contained in thejuices were punicalagin and ellagic acid derivatives. These bioactivemetabolitesfound in the juices varied qualitatively and quantitatively among the eightaccessions, thus constituting specific traits for selecting promising accessionsthat can be used as a nutritious food source. The different phenolic profilesmight be determined both by genotype and the growing environmental conditions,or by their interaction. Our results suggest that some of the studied wildgrowingpomegranate accessions might have a commercial value because oftheir richness in bioactive metabolites and might constitute a suitable source ofgenes for breeding programs.