Isolation and identification of 3 low-molecular compounds from pear (Pyrus pyrifolia Nakai cv. Chuhwangbae) fruit peel

Abstract

Three low-molecular compounds were isolated from methanol extracts of pear (Pyrus pyrifolia N. cv. Chuhwangbae) fruit peels using solvent fractionation, various types of column chromatogrphy (Diaion HP-20, Sephadex LH-20, and silica gel), and high performance liquid chromatography with an assay guided by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical-scavenging activity. The isolated compounds were identified as 2-carboxyl-4(1H)-quinolinone (kynurenic acid, 1) from butanol fraction, cis-p-coumaric acid (2) from ethyl acetate-acidic fraction, and vanillin (3) from the ethyl acetate-phenolic fraction, respectively. These isolated compounds were confirmed on the basis of the spectroscopic data of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance. This is the first time that compounds 1-3 were isolated and identified in pear.