TY - JOUR UR - https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.6442 DO - 10.7717/peerj.6442 TI - Comparative study on the composition of four different varieties of garlic AU - Chen,Cun AU - Cai,Jing AU - Liu,Song-qing AU - Qiu,Guo-liang AU - Wu,Xiao-gang AU - Zhang,Wei AU - Chen,Cheng AU - Qi,Wei-liang AU - Wu,Yong AU - Liu,Zhi-bin A2 - Sun,Xiaolin DA - 2019/02/21 PY - 2019 KW - Garlic KW - Nutrition analysis KW - Antimicrobial effects KW - 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural KW - GC–MS KW - Antitumor AB - Garlic is used as a medicinal seasoning worldwide. The aim of this work was to compare four varieties of garlic: ‘Taicangbaipi’, ‘Ershuizao’, ‘Hongqixing’, and ‘Single-clove’; among them, ‘Ershuizao’ and ‘Hongqixing’ are unique to the Sichuan Province of China. Firstly, soluble sugar, starch, and the protein content of the garlic were analysed. There was more soluble sugar in ‘Single-clove’, total starch in ‘Hongqixing’, and protein content in ‘Ershuizao’ relative to the other three varieties, respectively. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis showed that ‘Ershuizao’ and ‘Hongqixing’ contained high levels of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, which has antitumor, antioxidant, and cytoprotective effects. Indeed, the extracts from these two types of garlic were more effective at inhibiting tumour growth than that from the others. Moreover, the sulphide content and antimicrobial effects of ‘Ershuizao’ and ‘Hongqixing’ garlic were also higher than those of the other two types of garlic. In addition, changes observed in the membrane permeability and protein leakage suggest that the antimicrobial activity of the ‘Ershuizao’ and ‘Hongqixing’ extracts may be due to the destruction of the structural integrity of the cell membranes, leading to cell death. VL - 7 SP - e6442 T2 - PeerJ JO - PeerJ J2 - PeerJ SN - 2167-8359 ER -