Anatomical and Phytochemical Characterization of Ranunculus pinardii and Ranunculus constantinopolitanus: LC-MS/MS-Based Bioactive Compound Profiling

The aim of this study was to characterize Ranunculus pinardii and Ranunculus constantinopolitanus species anatomically and phytochemically. In order to contribute to the taxonomic characterization of R. pinardii and R. constantinopolitanus, anatomical structures of the stem, leaf, and petiole of species were examined with light microscopy. Total phenolic-flavonoid content, antioxidant activity, total anthocyanin, total proanthocyanidin, and individual phenolic compounds of extracts prepared with different solvents were determined. The results showed that the total phenolic contents of the species had a similar range (0.09-0.45 mg GAE/g for R. pinardii and 0.01-0.44 mg GAE/g for R. constantinopolitanus), but R. constantinopolitanus exhibited higher antioxidant activity (29.28 mg TE/g). Higher individual phenolic compound recovery was achieved from R. pinardii compared to R. constantinopolitanus with all solvents, except methanol. Both species were rich in luteolin, a natural flavonoid (163.98-34417.11 µg/kg for R. pinardii and 44.93-129009.44 µg/kg for R. constantinopolitanus). These results indicate that these plants contain bioactive ingredients that may have applications in different fields, such as medicine, cosmetics, and food. In particular, the detection of luteolin compound at high levels in these species compared to other components indicates that optimization studies aimed at the recovery of luteolin are important for future research.