Variation of Phenolic Acid Compounds in the Iranian Germplasm of Boraginaceae, a Chemotaxonomy Approach

In this study, phenolic acid compositions in fourteen taxa of Boraginaceae were analyzed by HPLC-UV to obtain informative chromatographic data. In general, 9 phenolic acid compounds were identified in different studied taxa. m-coumaric acid (1.80-1962.09 mg/kg), salicylic acid (13.22-867.35 mg/kg), ferulic acid (0.00-661.69 mg/kg), and p-coumaric acid (12.10-392.48 mg/kg) were characterized as the main compounds of the studied taxa. The results indicated that m-coumaric acid was the main phenolic acid in H. rigidium, M. sylvatica, and solnathus stamineus. Furthermore, salicylic acid was the main phenolic acids of M. sylvatica and N. caspica. Also, the highest amounts of ferulic acid and p-coumaric acid were detected in M. sylvatica and Heliotropium europaeum, respectively. The qualitative and quantitative evaluation of these compounds was used for the characterization of the taxa and for revealing their phytochemical similarity and differentiation. Hierarchical cluster analysis showed that the studied taxa were classified into two main clusters (I and II) based on main phenolic acid compounds. Cluster I included H. rigidum, S. stamineus, and L. microcarpaa, and the rest studied taxa grouped in cluster II. The chemotaxonomic significance of the isolated compounds was discussed.