Graduate School of Science and Technology, Shizuoka University, 836 Ohya, Suruga-ku, Shizuoka 422-8529, Japan.
J Sci Food Agric. 2012 Aug 15;92(10):2128-32. doi: 10.1002/jsfa.5596. Epub 2012 Feb 1.
Recently, tea (Camellia sinensis) flowers have attracted increasing interest because of their content of bioactive compounds such as catechins. The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence of some characteristic compounds in tea flowers.
A principal component analysis of metabolites using ultra-performance liquid chromatography/time-of-flight mass spectrometry showed differences in metabolite profile between flowers and leaves of C. sinensis var. Yabukita. Four spermidine derivatives were isolated from tea flowers. One of them was determined as N(1) ,N(5) ,N(10) -tricoumaroyl spermidine based on NMR, MS and UV data. The other three were identified as feruoyl dicoumaroyl spermidine, coumaroyl diferuoyl spermidine and triferuoyl spermidine based on MS(n) data. Tricoumaroyl spermidine as the major spermidine conjugate was not detected in tea leaves. Furthermore, it decreased during floral development and mainly occurred in anthers.
This study has provided the first evidence that spermidine-phenolic acid conjugates occur in tea flowers in considerable amounts. Their presence should prompt a reconsideration of the ecological role of tea flowers. From an economic point of view, tea flowers might be suitable as a raw material in the healthcare food and pharmaceutical industries.
最近，由于茶叶（Camellia sinensis）花中含有生物活性化合物，如儿茶素，因此越来越受到关注。本研究旨在研究茶叶中一些特征化合物的存在情况。
利用超高效液相色谱/飞行时间质谱对代谢物进行主成分分析，表明了 Yabukita 变种的茶叶花和茶叶之间代谢物谱的差异。从茶叶花中分离出四种亚精胺衍生物。根据 NMR、MS 和 UV 数据，其中一种被确定为 N(1),N(5),N(10) -三咖啡酰亚精胺。另外三种根据 MS(n)数据被鉴定为 feruoyl 二咖啡酰亚精胺、咖啡酰 diferuoyl 亚精胺和 triferuoyl 亚精胺。茶叶中未检测到主要的亚精胺结合物三咖啡酰亚精胺。此外，它在花发育过程中减少，主要存在于花药中。
本研究首次提供了证据表明，亚精胺-酚酸结合物在茶叶花中大量存在。它们的存在应该促使人们重新考虑茶叶花的生态作用。从经济角度来看，茶叶花可能适合作为保健品、食品和制药行业的原料。
