Valorization of local regional apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) cultivars versus commercial samples from Spain: Phenolic compounds by HPLC-MS/MS, cytotoxicity and biological potential on nitric oxide radicals and lipoxygenase inhibition

Sustainability in the fruit industry and protection of local cultivars are nowadays important tasks for consumers and authorities. Phenolic compounds are interesting to explore because they play an important role in fruit-related health benefits. The phenolic profile of the regional and commercial Spanish apple cultivars was performed by high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). For a deeper understanding of their anti-inflammatory and antioxidant potential, the 5-lipoxigenase inhibition and NO − scavenging were evaluated. Moreover, cellular viability was determined to perform MTT assay in HepG2 and HeLa cell lines to discard cytotoxicity. The results showed that procyanidin B2 (PB2), 3-caffeoylquinic acid, epicatechin and 4-hydroxy benzoic acid were the most abundant phenolic compounds. Autochthonous apple cultivars showed better 5-LOX/NO − inhibition and nontoxic effects in the tested cell lines with an interesting profile of phenolic compounds. Local autochthonous apples can be considered a better source of bioactive compounds than the commercial samples. • Most of local apple varieties contained a higher content in phenolic compounds than commercial samples • Amarilla de Octubre was the local autochthonous sample with the higher amount of phenolic compounds • The best samples in terms of biological properties as nitric oxide scavenging activity or LOX inhibition were local cultivars • Local and commercial samples did not induce alterations on HepG2 and HeLa cell viability