The rising demand for natural antioxidants and bioactive compounds has led to increased interest in exploring plant-based sources. Roses, traditionally valued for their aesthetic and medicinal properties, contain a diverse array of phytochemicals with potential health benefits. This study addresses the need for a comprehensive understanding of the phytochemical composition and antioxidant potential of different rose cultivars. By characterizing these properties, the research aims to provide insights for the selection of rose cultivars with specific traits that could be valuable for various applications in traditional medicine, the food industry, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. The study uses multivariate analysis to identify key phytochemicals and their relationships to antioxidant activity in different cultivars, a novel approach for rose cultivar characterization.
Methods
Seventeen rose cultivars were collected and their petal extracts prepared. Quantitative phytochemical assays were conducted to estimate total phenols, flavonoids, carotenoids, anthocyanins, and tannins. Antioxidant activity was assessed using DPPH and FRAP assays. Statistical analyses, including correlation analysis, PCA, HCA, and PLS-DA, were performed to elucidate relationships between phytochemicals and antioxidant activity.
Key Points
•Phytochemical Composition
◦’Pusa Pitamber’ and ‘Summer Snow’ displayed elevated phenolic content, making them suitable for skincare, culinary uses, and traditional medicine.
◦’Pusa Gaurav’ and ‘IHT’ cultivars exhibited the highest tannin content, important for industries seeking natural colorants.
◦’Pusa Mohit’ and ‘Pusa Abhishek’ showed promising antioxidant potential, of interest to the food and health sectors.
◦Eleven distinct carotenoids were identified, with ‘Pusa Bahaddur’ exhibiting the highest concentrations of several.
◦The ‘Charisma’ cultivar exhibited the highest anthocyanin content.
•Antioxidant Activity
◦Cultivars such as ‘Pusa Mohit’, ‘Dr. S. S. Bhatnagar’, ‘Pusa Arun’, and ‘Pusa Abhishek’ exhibited high inhibition percentages and low IC50 values in DPPH assays, indicating strong antioxidant capabilities.
◦’Pusa Abhishek’ exhibited the highest antioxidant activity in FRAP assays.
•Statistical Analysis
◦Total flavonoid content showed a strong positive correlation with total anthocyanin content.
◦Cluster analysis divided the cultivars into four distinct groups based on their phytochemical composition.
◦PCA identified flavonoid content, tannin content, anthocyanin levels, and antioxidant activity as prominent contributors to the variance.
◦PLS-DA emphasized phenols and flavonoids as potential biomarkers in differentiating rose cultivars in terms of antioxidant potential.
◦β-carotene, Neoxanthin and Antheraxanthin were identified as potential biomarkers based on Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) from diverse carotenoid profiles obtained in rose cultivars.
This research provides a thorough assessment of the phytochemical diversity and antioxidant potential of seventeen rose cultivars. The study’s novelty lies in its comprehensive analysis, which not only quantifies various phytochemicals but also elucidates their interrelationships and contributions to antioxidant activity using advanced statistical techniques. The identification of specific cultivars with high levels of desirable compounds and the use of carotenoids as potential biomarkers offers valuable insights for crop improvement programs, cultivar selection, and the utilization of rose-derived compounds in diverse industries. Future research could explore the specific health benefits of these rose cultivars through in vivo studies and investigate the optimization of extraction methods for targeted phytochemicals.
Link to the study: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s44279-025-00171-1
