Comparative study of the production of coumarins and furanocoumarins in three Ruteae species

Abstract

Within specialized metabolites, coumarins and furanocoumarins represent a wide group of structurally diverse compounds and are specially produced in plants belonging to the Rutaceae family. Here we performed the furanocoumarin and coumarin-targeted chemical characterization of three Ruteae species collected from Algeria. Detection and quantification of 27 coumarins and furanocoumarins extracted from stems and leaves was carried out by UHPLC-MS. We highlighted significant chemical differences between these plants. Ruta chalepensis L. is the highest producer with 24.83 mmol/g dry material in stems and 15.70 mmol/g dry materials in leaves while Haplophyllum tuberculatum (Forsk.) is the lowest producer. We also showed a surprising chemical diversity between R. chalepensis L and R. angustifolia Pers. This chemical diversity might, therefore, be a helpful tool for phylogenetic identification of plants.