Biochemical characteristics of Allium ursinum L. sprouts as affected by the growing location in Chechen republic

Ramson (Allium ursinum L.) leaves are widely used as a food spice and a powerful herb in traditional medicine. The lack of literature data relevant to the nutritional characteristics of ramson sprouts arises the need to investigate the prospects of their utilization. A. ursinum sprouts grown in ten locations of eight regions of the Chechen republic were compared with regard to their quality and antioxidant characteristics. Ramson sprouts showed significant variations in antioxidant activity (39.6- 67.1 mg GAE g-1 DW), titratable acidity (12.2-40.0 g malic acid kg-1 DW), total dissolved solids (3.37- 9.20 g kg-1 DW), disaccharides (25-82 g kg-1 DW) and selenium (41-1775 μg kg-1 DW) content. A positive correlation between selenium and total dissolved solids in sprouts (r = 0.836; P≤0.001) and a negative correlation with ascorbic acid content (r = -0.867; P≤0.001) were recorded. Antioxidant activity, polyphenol content, and ascorbic acid content in the sprouts were, respectively, 1.8, 1.3, and 2.0 times higher than in the leaves of mature plants. Despite the geographical variability of the regions where A. ursinum has been grown in the present investigation, all the measured quality and antioxidant indicators show that ramson sprouts can represent an important functional food with high nutraceutical potential.