The amino acid composition of garlic (Allium sativum L.) and different varieties of onions (Allium cepa L.) in homeopathic mother tinctures

Abstract

Varietal diversity of Allium cepa and Allium sativum is not taken into account in the manufacture of medicines (including homeopathy) from the bulbs of onions and garlic. Different varieties of onions with a different chemical composition grow in different countries, but foreign Homeopathic Pharmacopoeias have no reference to the use of specific varieties Allium cepa L. and Allium sativum L. The present study examines the amino acid composition of homeopathic mother tinctures of different varieties of Allium cepa and Allium sativum in a comparative perspective. Comparative HPLC analysis of the amino acid composition of garlic and different varieties of onion homeopathic mother tinctures revealed the presence of a wide spectrum of amino acids; 19 of them were identified. It was shown that all of the analyzed tinctures have similar qualitative amino acids composition (after hydrolysis); quantitative amino acid content varies depending on varieties of onions. The total content of amino acids after hydrolysis in homoeopathic mother tinctures (raw onion materials) ranged from 0.2 % (varieties of onion: Holland white, Myachkovski) to 0.5 % (Red Baron); in the garlic tincture - 0.6 %. The total content of essential amino acids after hydrolysis in onion homoeopathic mother tinctures ranged from 0.03% (Holland white, Myachkovski) to 0.08 % (Red Baron); in garlic tincture - 0.1 %. Regardless of onion varieties the predominant amino acids in tinctures are: glutamic acid (36-42 % of all amino acids), arginine (17-27 %) and aspartic acid (7.12 %). These amino acids are dominant in the tincture of garlic too. Their content is respectively about 32 %, about 31 % and about 8 %.