Evaluation of Whitening Effects and Identification of Potentially Active Compounds Based on Untargeted Metabolomic Analysis in Different Chrysanthemum Cultivar Extracts

Chrysanthemum is a traditional Chinese medicinal herb. Chrysanthemum extracts are rich in bioactive compounds; however, there are few reports evaluating the whitening effects of organic chrysanthemum extracts. This study assessed the antioxidant and whitening effects of organic extracts from the petals of five chrysanthemum cultivars from Guangdong, China. Significant differences were observed among the five cultivars across various parameters, including <i>IC₅₀</i> values for tyrosinase inhibition activity, DPPH and ABTS values, UV absorption, and <i>SPF</i> values. Additionally, there were notable variations in total flavonoid, total phenolic, and chlorogenic acid contents. The BJ cultivar extract exhibited strong antioxidant capacity and superior whitening effects, containing the highest levels of total flavonoids, total phenolics, and chlorogenic acid. Correlation analysis indicated a significant relationship between total flavonoid content and <i>IC₅₀</i> of DPPH, and between chlorogenic acid and both <i>IC₅₀</i> of ABTS and <i>SPF</i>. Untargeted metabolomic analysis of three representative cultivars (BJ, WYHJ, and JSHJ) identified 22 compounds potentially related to antioxidant and whitening effects. Compounds significantly correlated with multiple antioxidant or whitening indicators (<i>p</i> < 0.05, <i>r</i> > 0.8) included tangeritin, hydroquinone, eupatilin, quercetin 3-(6″-malonyl-glucoside), biochanin A, and cyanidin 3-glucoside. These compounds may play crucial roles in the antioxidant and whitening effects of chrysanthemum extracts. The results highlight the promising antioxidant and whitening properties of chrysanthemum extracts, with certain genotypes, such as BJ, showing potential as superior raw material sources.