Abstract:

In order to screen high volatile oil, high shikimic acid, high estragole and other special type of Illicium verum excellent germplasm and provide a basis for resource exploitation and varietal breeding of Illicium verum, fresh leaves and dried fruits were collected from 14 excellent clones plant (HL1-HL14) of Illicium verum from the same production area. Volatile oil content in leaves and fruits was determined by steam distillation, shikimic acid content was quantified using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and volatile oil components were analyzed by gas chromatography (GC). Principal component analysis (PCA) was performed to evaluate the samples. The results indicated that the leaf oil content ranged from 0.2 to 0.69 mL/100g of excellent 14 clones, while the dried fruit oil content varied from 6.3 to 12.8 mL/100g, all up to the selection criterion of 6%. Clone HL9 exhibited the highest fruit oil content at 12.8 mL/100g. The shikimic acid content in dried fruits of HL4, HL6, and HL14 exceeded 9.0%. HL10 showed the highest estragole content at 0.71%. Considerable variation was observed among clones in terms of volatile oil content, shikimic acid content, and chemical composition. PCA-based comprehensive ranking of the 14 clones in descending order was: HL9, HL13, HL10, HL14, HL8, HL11, HL7, HL2, HL3, HL12, HL4, HL1, HL6, and HL5. Clones with higher composite scores include HL9, HL13, HL10, and HL14, which are recommended for selective cultivation. Among these, HL9 (highest fruit volatile oil content), HL10 (highest estragole content), HL14 (highest shikimic acid content), and HL3 (highest leaf volatile oil content) possess specific utilizable traits and can be targeted for production applications.

Key words: Illicium verum, clone, volatile oil, estragole, trans-anethole, cis-anethole, anisic aldehyde, shikimi acid