Identification of kaempferol-3-O-sophoroside as a characteristic marker and bioactive profile of Gentiana macrophylla pall. monofloral honey

Kaempferol-3-O-sophoroside was a marker of Gentiana macrophylla Pall. • monofloral honey (GH). • SEM and UHPLC–DAD-QTOF-MS/MS enabled reliable botanical authentication of GH. • GH was enriched in flavonoids and phenolics compared with common honeys. • GH exhibited significant antioxidant and antibacterial activities. As a medicinal plant–derived honey, Gentiana macrophylla Pall. monofloral honey (GH) remains insufficiently characterized in terms of botanical authentication and characteristic chemical markers. The objective of this study was to identify a marker compound for GH and to evaluate the physicochemical characteristics and bioactive properties. The botanical origin of GH was verified by SEM observation, revealing that Gentiana macrophylla Pall. pollen grains are monad, isopolar, radially symmetrical, with a tricolporate aperture system. Kaempferol-3-O-sophoroside was identified as a potential characteristic compound by UHPLC–DAD-QTOF-MS/MS, with a content of 331.06 ± 19.96 μg/kg in GH. Due to the abundant total flavonoid (34.98 ± 0.31 mg Rutin/kg) and total phenolic contents (283.68 ± 3.07 mg GAE/kg) compared with other common commercial honeys, GH exhibited significant antioxidant capacity and antibacterial activity against E. coli MG1655 and S. aureus 23,923. Consequently, kaempferol-3-O-sophoroside, as a potential authentication marker for GH, contributes to the improvement of bioactivity. Download: Download high-res image (207KB) Download: Download full-size image