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Leafy vegetables [ Basella rubra L., Peucedanum sowa Roxb., Moringa oleifera Lam., Trigonella foenum-graecumL., Spinacia oleraceaL., Sesbania grandiflora(L.) Poir., and Raphanus sativusL.] that are commonly used by the rural population in India were evaluated in terms of their main carotenoid pattern. The extracted carotenoids were purified by open column chromatography (OCC) on a neutral alumina column to verify their identity by their characteristic UV-visible absorption spectra. Reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) on a C18 column with UV-visible
photodiode array detection under isocratic conditions was used for quantification of isolated carotenoids. Acetonitrile/methanol/dichloromethane (60:20:20 v/v/v) containing 0.1% ammonium acetate was used as a mobile phase. The major carotenoids identified by both methods were lutein,-carotene, violaxanthin, neoxanthin, and zeaxanthin. Among the carotenoids identified, lutein and
‚-carotene levels were found to be higher in these leafy vegetables. Results show that P. sowa and S. oleraceaare rich sources of lutein (77-92 mg/100 g of dry wt) and ‚-carotene (36-44 mg/100 g of dry wt) compared with other leafy vegetables. The purity of carotenoids eluted by OCC was clarified by HPLC, and they were found to be 92% ( 3% for neoxanthin, 94% ( 2% for violaxanthin, 97% (
2% for lutein and zeaxanthin, and 90% ( 3% for ‚-carotene. It could be recommended to use P. sowa and S. oleraceaas rich sources of lutein and ‚-carotene for health benefits. The OCC method proposed is relatively simple and provides purified carotenoids for feeding trials.