Olive branches as a source of valuable bioactive compounds. Comparative studies on phenolic composition and antioxidant activity of olive leaves and branches

Olive by-products is at the center of commercial interest due to their high content in bioactive compounds. Till today, most of the studies have focused on olive leaves, olive mills by-products as well as edible olives debittering process by-products while there is only few information available about olive branches which is also a substantial agricultural by-product [1] [2].

In the present work, a systematic study towards the investigation of the phytochemical content of olive branches was performed. A high number of samples of different olive trees varieties and geographical regions of Greece were investigated using HPLC-DAD and LC-HRMS & HRMS/MS methods. Additionally, a comparative study was performed between leaves and branches of the same olive trees, in regard to their phenolic composition and antioxidant activity.

Based on our results, it is evident that olive branches, which are highly underestimated amongst olive by-products, comprise also a rich source of bioactives, with significant antioxidant activity.

Publication History

Article published online:
13 December 2021

• References

• 1 Gullón B.. et al. Science of The Total Environment 645 2018; 533-542
• 2 Ammar S.. et al. Phytochem Anal 2017; 28 (03) 217-229 DOI: 10.1002/pca.2664.