Analysis of widely targeted metabolites of quinoa sprouts (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) under saline-alkali stress provides new insights into nutritional value

Quinoa sprouts are a green vegetable rich in bioactive chemicals, which have multiple health benefits. However, there is limited information on the overall metabolic profiles of quinoa sprouts and the metabolic changes caused by saline-alkali stress. Here, a UHPLC-MS/MS-based widely targeted metabolomics technique was performed to comprehensively evaluate the metabolic profiles of quinoa sprouts and characterize the metabolic response to saline-alkali stress. A total of 930 metabolites were annotated, of which 232 showed significant response to saline-alkali stress. The saline-alkali stress increased the contents of lipids and amino acids and derivatives, while reducing the contents of flavonoids and phenolic acids. Moreover, saline-alkali stress reduced the antioxidant activities of quinoa sprouts. Further studies on pathway enrichment revealed that differential metabolites were mainly enriched in flavonoid, amino acid and sucrose pathways. This study provided an important theoretical basis for evaluating their nutritional value by delving into their metabolic responses to saline-alkali stress.