Metabolomics by UHPLC-Q-TOF Reveals Host Tree-Dependent Phytochemical Variation in <i>Viscum album</i> L.

• Main Authors: Tim Jäger, Carla Holandino, Michelle Nonato de Oliveira Melo, Evelyn Maribel Condori Peñaloza, Adriana Passos Oliveira, Rafael Garrett, Gaétan Glauser, Mirio Grazi, Hartmut Ramm, Konrad Urech, Stephan Baumgartner
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-08-01
• Series: Plants
• Subjects: <i>Viscum album</i>; mistletoe; host tree; metabolite fingerprinting; multivariate analysis
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/10/8/1726

<i>Viscum album</i> L., commonly known as European mistletoe, is a hemi-parasitic plant of the Santalaceae family. The in vitro and in vivo effects of <i>V. album</i> differ, according to its host tree. However, little is known about the host-dependent phytochemical diversity in <i>V. album</i>. In this study, the metabolic profiles of <i>V. album</i> ssp. <i>album</i> from <i>Malus domestica</i> Bork., <i>Quercus robur</i> L., and <i>Ulmus carpinifolia</i> Gled were compared. Leaves, stems, and berries were collected in Switzerland, by the same procedure, in September 2016 and 2017. The methanolic extracts were analyzed by ultra-performance liquid chromatography, coupled to electrospray quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry in positive ionization mode. The data were submitted to partial-least square discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) and the results showed that the <i>V. album</i> ssp. <i>album</i> samples were clustered into three groups, according to the three distinct host trees. Seven compounds, with high VIP scores (variable importance in projection), were responsible for this differentiation. The following four compounds were detected in both the harvest years: arginine, pipecolic acid or lysine, dimethoxycoumarin, and sinapyl alcohol, suggesting their use as host specific <i>V. album</i> biomarkers. The present work highlights the importance of standardized harvest and analytical procedures for the reproducibility of the chemical results of herbal materials.