Hydroxycinnamic acid derivatives occurring in Cichorium endivia vegetables

The hydroxycinnamic acid derivatives found in Chicorium endivia var. crispum and var. latifolium polyphenolic extracts were detected and characterized by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) combined with photodiode array detector (DAD) and electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS/MS). The method provides data (molecular weight and diagnostic fragment ions) on the molecular structure of compounds. The combined approach enabled identification of four hydroxycinnamic derivatives in each chicory extract; three derivatives (5-O-caffeoylquinic acid, 3,4-di-O-caffeoylquinic acid, and 5-O-feruloylquinic acid) were found in both chicories, while 3,5-di-O-caffeoylquinic acid was typical of var. crispum and cis-caftaric acid of var. latifolium.