Antioxidant characterization of different italian broccoli landraces

The Brassicaceae plants are among the most consumed vegetables in the world. They feature a large biodiversity, in which landraces and primitive cultivars still play a major role on the cultivation systems of many countries. Brassicas and especially broccoli are closely linked to antioxidant compounds that play a key role for human health. This experiment aimed to characterize some Italian unknown broccoli landraces from the antioxidant point of view. Five landraces named BF, BF4, BFT, BB and BS were evaluated. The total antioxidant properties of broccoli were significantly different among ecotypes and the higher values were recorded in BS and BF4. Total phenols showed the higher values in BF4 and concerning the ascorbic acid content found in the different ecotypes results can be summarized in three groups: the first one is represented by BB with higher values, the second one by BF4 and BS and then BF and BFT. BB represented the lower amount of hydroxycinnamic acids, whereas BF4 showed quite higher sulforaphane content (+95%) than other cultivars. The high content of phenolic acids, vitamin C and antioxidant compounds make these broccoli landraces, still little known, an important natural source of dietary antioxidant.