Functional Compounds and Antioxidant Activity of Rosa Species Grown In Turkey

Rose hips differ from other fruits with their high vitamin C, vitamin E, phenolic, and antioxidant content, making it an economical source of antioxidants. Exploring the fruit and seed components of different Rosa species could enable better use of their potential for various industries. Thus, rose hips of Rosa corymbifera, Rosa rugosa (Thunb.), Rosa alba L., and Rosa canina L. cultivated in the same growing conditions were analyzed. Their antioxidant activity and capacity, vitamin C, total carotenoids and phenolics, tocopherols and seed oils, as well as their fatty acid composition were determined. In addition to having highly polyunsaturated fatty acids, R. canina was also found to have noticeably high antioxidant components. In the overall evaluation (both fruit and oil characteristics), R. canina was found to have the most favorable content, while R. rugosa has the most desirable oil characteristics. As a result of the evaluation of fruit (excluding oil), R. corymbifera and R. canina were determined as prominent species. Despite medium level oil content, R. rugosa can be recommended for seed oil uses. R. corymbifera and R. canina are recommended for the food and food supplement industry. Production of rose hip species that contain the remarkable functional components of fruits and the health-promoting fatty acids of seeds may be used in combination as a marketing tool. In this way, the medicinal plant market share and profitability rate of rose hip will increase.