LAUSR

Cichorium intybus L. is a perennial herb commonly known as chicory, grown in different part of Pakistan under different water resources. It is used as a leafy vegetable, as a salad or as a medicinal plant. This study evaluated for the first time the polyphenolic profiles of chicory leaves grown under different water resources such as fresh, rain and river water. The phenolic compounds from leaves samples were extracted, analysed and quantified using reversed phase HPLC-DAD. The principal component analysis (PCA) was performed to observe correlations between different samples and phenolic compounds. Results showed that 18 phenolic compounds were identified and quantified in chicory leaves. The p-hydroxybenzoic acid was ranged from 32.4 to 375.9 µg/g, quinic acid (4.3–45.4 µg/g), 3-O-caffeoylquinic acid (9.1–44.6 µg/g), 5-O-caffeoylquinic acid (21.9–26.6 µg/g), 4-O-caffeoylquinic acid (3.8–9.2 µg/g), coumaric acid (18.7–46.9 µg/g), caftaric acid (8.5–16.6 µg/g), chicoric acid (6.1–18.8 µg/g), 3,4-di-O-caffeoylquinic acid (5.3–11.4 µg/g), caffeoyl hexose (17.6–40.1 µg/g), quercetin-3-feruloyl-sophoroside (70.3–162.4 µg/g), 4-feruloyl quinic acid (14.6–104.1 µg/g), quercetin-3-glucoside (6.9–100.8 µg/g), quercetin-di-glucoside (9.2–68.5 µg/g), kaempferol-3-sophoroside (10.3–187.9 µg/g), luteolin-7-O-glucoside (4.6–35.7 µg/g), quercetin-3-O-rutinoside (3.5–8.8 µg/g), and kaempferol-3-O-glucoside (7.5–42.5 µg/g). The rainwater samples contain high amounts of polyphenols (899.7 µg/g), followed by river water (740.8 µg/g), whereas freshwater samples contain the lowest amounts (677.1 µg/g). Significant variations were observed in different polyphenols. The PCA revealed that significant correlation was present among the samples and different phenolic compounds.