Exploring the chemical composition and biological effects of four Salvia hybrids: an innovative perspective on functional yields

Genus Salvia is considered one of the largest genera of family Lamiaceae with many recorded species and hybrids of valuable biological importance. This study involved the phytochemical characterization of four Salvia hybrids (KNM23 (S. fructicosa x S. officinalis), KNM101 (S. aramiensis x S. officinalis), KNM5 (S. aramiensis x S. officinalis) and KNM12 (S. fructicosa x S. officinalis)) through measuring their total phenolic content (TPC) and total flavonoid content (TFC) together with profiling through UPLC/MSn analysis followed by investigation of their antioxidant activities and enzyme inhibitory potential through different techniques. Hybrid KNM23 presented significantly high concentration of both phenolic and flavonoid, displaying a TPC of 92.10 mg GAE/g and a TFC of 50.85 mg RE/g. The UPLC/MSn profiling resulted in the tentative identification of one hundred eighty components from different phytochemical classes mainly flavonoids, phenolic acids, phenyl propanoids, tannins and many others. The antioxidant assay showed that hybrid KNM23, a hybrid of S. fruticosa and S. officinalis, exhibited the highest antioxidant activity in the DPPH, ABTS, and PBD assays, measuring 436.38 mmol TE/g, 543.65 mmol TE/g, and 3.20 mmol TE/g, respectively. KNM23 and KNM12 showed no inhibition of AChE and alpha-glucosidase. However, KMN12 demonstrated highest BChE and tyrosinase 2.57 mg GALAE/g and 12.91 mg KAE/g, respectively. Our results suggest that the Salvia hybrids can be considered as natural sources of bioactive compounds in the development of health-promoting applications.