Anthocyanins in Bracts of Euphorbia Pulcherrima as Revealed by Paper Chromatographic and Spectrophotometric Methods.

Lawrence et al (4) identified the red pigment in bracts of poinsettia as an anthocyanin. The methods employed served to identify the principal anthocyanidin (cyanidin), but not the sugar moiety. Blank (2), Robinson and Robinson (5, 6, 7), and Scott-Moncrieff (8) reported that variation in the sugar moiety of the anthocyanin pigment affected color. They found that monoglycosides were redder than the corresponding pentose glycosides, while 3-biosides and 3,5-diglycosides were bluer. The purpose of the present investigation was to isolate and identify by paper Chromatographie and spectrophotometric methods the anthocyanidin as well as the sugar moiety of the anthocyanin in bracts of Euphorbia pulcherrima.