A comparative analysis on the anthocyanin composition of 74 blueberry cultivars from China

Blueberries are rich in anthocyanins and studied for their numerous beneficial effects on human health. The present study aimed to evaluate the anthocyanin composition of 74 blueberries collected in the south of China as well as analyze the phytochemical relationships among cultivars. Rabbiteye, southern highbush, northern highbush, half-highbush and lowbush blueberry cultivars were analyzed. Delphinidin, cyanidin, petunidin, and malvidin had three glycoside forms including galactoside, glucoside, and arabinoside, while peonidin had only galactoside form. The anthocyanin profile was similar among cultivars but amounts of individual compound differed. Malvidin, delphinidin and petunidin were the major contributors to total anthocyanin content (TAC), and malvidin-3-O-galactoside had the highest content among the 74 blueberry cultivars. Gardenblue had the highest TAC (2,235.51 ± 54.18 μg cyanidin 3-glucoside equivalent g−1 wet weight). In general, rabbiteye had significantly higher TAC than other categories analyzed in this study.