Changes in phenolic content of wild and greenhouse-grown Hypericum triquetrifolium during plant development

Abstract

Hypericum triquetrifolium is a promising medicinal plant from eastern Europe and the Mediterranean area. The present study was conducted to determine ontogenetic and morphogenetic variation of chlorogenic acid, rutin, hyperoside, isoquercetin, quercitrin, and quercetin content in this species. The wild-growing and greenhouse-grown plants were harvested at vegetative, floral budding, full flowering, fresh fruiting, and mature fruiting stages and were dissected into stem, leaf, and reproductive tissues, which were dried separately and subsequently assayed for bioactive compounds by high performance liquid chromatography. Chemical contents in whole plants increased during plant phenology and, generally, higher accumulation levels were observed in wild plants. Depending on the development stages, the reproductive parts accumulated the highest level of hyperoside and quercetin, but the leaves produced a higher amount of chlorogenic acid, rutin, isoquercetin, and quercitrin. According to the results, there is a close relationship between the chemical content in plant parts and development stages during the phenological cycle. The raw material of H. triquetrifolium should be harvested during flower ontogenesis for medicinal purposes.