Characterization of biochemical compounds in different accessions of pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) peels in Iraq

The polyphenol complex of pomegranate peel ( Punica granatum L.), which makes up half of the pomegranate fruit, is important due to its roles in disease prevention. Although several studies examined the phenolic compounds in pomegranate peel, there is no any previous study on this plant part in Iraq using HPLC. This study was carried out to investigate the content of these bioactive compounds in pomegranate peels of 27 accessions collected from five different locations in the North and Middle of Iraq. In total; ten polyphenolic agents, including Gallic acid, Ellagic acid, Hydroxybenzoic acid, Caffeic acid, Luteolin, Quercetin, Catechin, Rutin, Punicalins and punicalagin were detected in the ethanolic extracts of the respective accessions using HPLC technique. Results showed that the range of concentrations (µg/ml) of the phenolic compounds, namely gallic acid (80.6-170.24), ellagic acid (50.32-134.36), punicalagin (5.2-130.32), luteolin (20-122.32), catechin (50.2-121), rutin (41-102.36), hydrobenzoic acid (26.2-101.96), quercetin (27.92-94.36), punicalins (29.92-90.36) and caffeic acid (38.32-81) were significantly varied in the selected accessions. The highest concentrations of all the respective phenolic compounds were characterized in the accession number 27, which was collected from Shahraban. This accession might be a valuable source for pharmaceutical products, specifically anti-cancers. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/