VITAMIN PROFILE IN UNCONVENTIONAL FOOD PLANTS IN RIO DOCE VALLEY, MINAS GERAIS, BRAZIL

Brazil has a diverse flora, with plants with food potential not yet studied. These include unconventional food plants (PANC's) that can contribute to diversifying and enhancing the quality of human food. This study aimed to investigate the nutritional value of native dandelion (Taraxacum officinale), caruru (Amaranthus viridis) and trapoeraba (Commelina benghalensis) native from the municipality of Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais. Vitamin C and carotenoids (α- and β-carotene; β-cryptoxanthin; lycopene) were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), with diode array detection and vitamin E (α-, β-, γ- e δ- tocopherols and tocotrienols) by HPLC with fluorescence detection. The trapoeraba was the only PANC that presented vitamin C (23.61g 100g-1). The carotenoid content ranged from 7.19 g 100g-1 in the caruru to 31.97g 100g-1 in the trapoeraba. Approximately 98% of the carotenoid content observed in plants corresponded to β-carotene and the remainder to β-cryptoxanthin. Dandelion presented the highest total vitamin E content (43.67 µg 100g-1), followed by caruru and trapoeraba (25.74 and 24.08 µg 100g-1, respectively). Β-tocopherol and β-tocotrienol were not identified in any of the PANCs, with α- and γ-tocopherol being the main components in the caruru and dandelion, each corresponding to approximately 25% of the total content. In trapoeraba, the main components of vitamin E were γ-tocopherol (44.6%) and δ-tocopherol (36.8%). The unconventional food plants presented a diversified vitamin profile, highlighting trapoeraba as an important source of these compounds.