<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

Rhubarb (<italic>Rheum</italic> L.) is a well-known medicinal and culinary plant. Apart from its rich nutritional value, rhubarb contains a higher concentration of oxalates. In this study, the content of L-ascorbic acid (AA) and oxalic acid (OA) within three rhubarb species (<italic>Rheum rhabarbarum, R. rhaponticum</italic> and <italic>R. palmatum</italic> × <italic>wittrockii</italic>) differentiated to 16 accessions in a gene bank rhubarb collection (Lednice, Czech Republic) in the condition of conventional production in the South Moravia region during the harvesting period was evaluated. While L-ascorbic acid is essential in human nutrition, oxalic acid is considered toxic, and high doses may cause serious health issues. AA and OA content, the morphology evaluation and ISSR (inter simple sequence repeats)-based genetic analysis were performed. The results of this study confirm the significant influence of taxonomy and harvesting time on the content of AA in Rheum accessions. The content of AA was determined from 6 mg · 100 g-1 to 10 g · 100 g-1 fresh weight (FW) at the beginning of the harvesting season (May) up to 25 mg · 100 g-1 FW at the end of the harvesting period. The content of OA strongly varied from 300 mg · 100 g-1 to 1800 mg · 100 g-1 FW. Regarding the antinutrient character of oxalate, the optimal harvest period of this region was estimated to be from May to early June, when the OA content was the lowest. The role of AA as a precursor of oxalate formation in rhubarb was not affirmed by the results of this study.
</abstract>

Rhubarb (Rheum L.) is a well-known medicinal and culinary plant. Apart from its rich nutritional value, rhubarb contains a higher concentration of oxalates. In this study, the content of L-ascorbic acid (AA) and oxalic acid (OA) within three rhubarb species (Rheum rhabarbarum, R. rhaponticum and R. palmatum × wittrockii) differentiated to 16 accessions in a gene bank rhubarb collection (Lednice, Czech Republic) in the condition of conventional production in the South Moravia region during the harvesting period was evaluated. While L-ascorbic acid is essential in human nutrition, oxalic acid is considered toxic, and high doses may cause serious health issues. AA and OA content, the morphology evaluation and ISSR (inter simple sequence repeats)-based genetic analysis were performed. The results of this study confirm the significant influence of taxonomy and harvesting time on the content of AA in Rheum accessions. The content of AA was determined from 6 mg · 100 g-1 to 10 g · 100 g-1 fresh weight (FW) at the beginning of the harvesting season (May) up to 25 mg · 100 g-1 FW at the end of the harvesting period. The content of OA strongly varied from 300 mg · 100 g-1 to 1800 mg · 100 g-1 FW. Regarding the antinutrient character of oxalate, the optimal harvest period of this region was estimated to be from May to early June, when the OA content was the lowest. The role of AA as a precursor of oxalate formation in rhubarb was not affirmed by the results of this study.

Influence of <italic>Rheum</italic> taxa and harvesting date on the content of L-ascorbic acid and oxalic acid in the climatic conditions of South Moravia (Czech Republic)

Folia Horticulturae

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Influence of  taxa and harvesting date on the content of L-ascorbic acid and oxalic acid in the climatic conditions of South Moravia (Czech Republic)

Rhubarb (Rheum L.) is a well-known medicinal and culinary plant. Apart from its rich nutritional value, rhubarb contains a higher concentration of oxalates. In...

Influence of Rheum taxa and harvesting date on the content of L-ascorbic acid and oxalic acid in the climatic conditions of South Moravia (Czech Republic)

Article Category: ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Published Online: Dec 31, 2023

Page range: 449 - 465

Received: Aug 10, 2023

Accepted: Nov 10, 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/fhort-2023-0032

Keywords
Chinese rhubarb, gene bank collection, genotypes, ISSR analysis, oxalate, rhubarb, vitamin C

© 2023 Jarmila Neugebauerová et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Influence of Rheum taxa and harvesting date on the content of L-ascorbic acid and oxalic acid in the climatic conditions of South Moravia (Czech Republic)

Article Category: ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Published Online: Dec 31, 2023

Page range: 449 - 465

Received: Aug 10, 2023

Accepted: Nov 10, 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/fhort-2023-0032

KeywordsChinese rhubarb, gene bank collection, genotypes, ISSR analysis, oxalate, rhubarb, vitamin C

© 2023 Jarmila Neugebauerová et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
Chinese rhubarb, gene bank collection, genotypes, ISSR analysis, oxalate, rhubarb, vitamin C