Widely targeted LC-MS/MS approach provides insights into variations in bioactive flavonoid compounds and their antioxidant activities in green, red, and purple sugarcane

Sugarcane produces enormous secondary metabolites that have significant nutritive and pharmacological value. However, flavonoid diversity, their molecular mechanism, and the transcription factor involved in the regulation of flavonoids are mostly unknown in sugarcane. This study revealed a total of 162 flavonoids, encompassing various subclasses such as flavones, flavonoid carbonosides, flavonols, dihydroflavones, dihydroflavonols, chalcones, flavanols, and isoflavones. Among the different color varieties, the purple rind of YT71-210 exhibited the maximum level of flavonoids (19.26 mg/mL) with significantly higher antiradical activities, followed by the red rind of ROC22 (16.83 mg/mL). Conversely, the green rind of YT93-159 displayed the lowest level of flavonoids (6.14 mg/mL). Furthermore, our transcriptome analysis identified candidate MYB transcription factors that are potentially associated with flavonoid biosynthesis. Notably, correlation analysis revealed a strong association between one candidate MYB gene and the flavonoid compounds, further supporting its role in flavonoid biosynthesis. To conclude, our study provides a comprehensive understanding of the flavonoid composition and the identification of candidate MYB transcription factors associated offers valuable insights into the genetic regulation of flavonoids. • LC-MS/MS identified 162 flavonoids in purple, red, and green color sugarcane rinds. • Purple rind of YT71-210 shown the highest flavonoids, followed by red rind of ROC22. • Transcriptome analysis identified a MYB gene, potentially associated with flavonoids. • YT71-210 has significantly higher antiradical activities than other sugarcane varieties. • Our study offers valuable insights in flavonoids diversity and their genetic regulation.