Comparative Analysis of the Amino Acids and Effective Components from Viola mandshurica

This study compared amino acids and effective components of Viola mandshurica produced in Korea with those of Chinese plants, as part of a study on nutritional andfunctional materials, to aid in the development of a valuable food. The contents of reducing sugar, free sugar, polyphenols, and soluble protein in the flowers of V. mandshurica were higher than in other fractions, being 10,485.11 mg%, 118.85 mg%, 1,259.26 mg%, and 23.67 mg%, respectively. Total flavonoid content of Chinese leaves was the highest at 2,370.75 mg%, followed by 1,844.43 mg% in Korean leaves. Free amino acids were highest in Korean leaves (5,345.21 mg%), followed by roots (4,692.24 mg%), flowers (3,807.87 mg%), and leaves of China plants (3,613.81 mg%). Arginine accounted for 55% of free amino acids in the roots, and all plant fractions contained more valine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid, alanine, and arginine, than other amino acids. The total content of amino acid derivatives was the highest (9,058.80 mg%) in Korean leaves. Especially, -aminoadipic acid constituted over 50% of total amino acid derivatives in all plant parts of V. mandshurica. When mineral contents were analyzed, leaves grown in China showed the highest content of 5,917.57 mg%, and the contents of K, Ca, and Mg were much greater than those of other minerals, together comprising over 95% of total mineral content in leaves and flowers from Korea.