Delphinidin (also delphinidine) is an

anthocyanidin Anthocyanidins are common plant pigments, the sugar-free counterparts of anthocyanins. They are based on the flavylium cation, an oxonium ion, with various groups substituted for its hydrogen atoms. They generally change color from red through ...

, a primary

plant pigment Biological pigments, also known simply as pigments or biochromes, are substances produced by living organisms that have a color resulting from selective color absorption. Biological pigments include plant pigments and flower pigments. Many biol ...

, and also an

antioxidant Antioxidants are compounds that inhibit oxidation, a chemical reaction that can produce free radicals. This can lead to polymerization and other chain reactions. They are frequently added to industrial products, such as fuels and lubricant ...

. Delphinidin gives blue hues to flowers in the genera ''Viola'' and ''

Delphinium ''Delphinium'' is a genus of about 300 species of annual and perennial flowering plants in the family (biology), family Ranunculaceae, native plant, native throughout the Northern Hemisphere and also on the high mountains of tropical Africa. Th ...

''. It also gives the blue-red color of the

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years ago, ...

that produces

Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebanon' ...

, and can be found in

cranberries Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines in the subgenus ''Oxycoccus'' of the genus ''Vaccinium''. In Britain, cranberry may refer to the native species ''Vaccinium oxycoccos'', while in North America, cranberry ...

and

Concord grapes The Concord grape is a cultivar derived from the grape species ''Vitis labrusca'' (also known as fox grape) that are used as table grapes, wine grapes and juice grapes. They are often used to make grape Jelly (fruit preserves), jelly, grape juic ...

as well as

pomegranate The pomegranate (''Punica granatum'') is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub in the family Lythraceae, subfamily Punicoideae, that grows between tall. The pomegranate was originally described throughout the Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean re ...

s, and

bilberries Bilberries (), or sometimes European blueberries, are a primarily Eurasian species of low-growing shrubs in the genus '' Vaccinium'' (family Ericaceae), bearing edible, dark blue berries. The species most often referred to is ''Vaccinium myrti ...

. Delphinidin, like nearly all other anthocyanidins, is pH-sensitive, i.e. a natural pH indicator, and changes from blue in basic

solution Solution may refer to: * Solution (chemistry), a mixture where one substance is dissolved in another * Solution (equation), in mathematics ** Numerical solution, in numerical analysis, approximate solutions within specified error bounds * Soluti ...

to red in

acid In computer science, ACID ( atomicity, consistency, isolation, durability) is a set of properties of database transactions intended to guarantee data validity despite errors, power failures, and other mishaps. In the context of databases, a sequ ...

ic solution.

Glycosides

Several

glycoside In chemistry, a glycoside is a molecule in which a sugar is bound to another functional group via a glycosidic bond. Glycosides play numerous important roles in living organisms. Many plants store chemicals in the form of inactive glycosides. ...

s derived from delphinidin are known: *

Myrtillin Myrtillin is an anthocyanin. It is the 3- glucoside of delphinidin. It can be found in all green plants, most abundantly in blackcurrant, blueberry, huckleberry, bilberry leaves and in various myrtles, roselle plants, and ''Centella asiatica ...

(delphinidin-3-''O''-glucoside) and

tulipanin Tulipanin is an anthocyanin. It is the 3-O- rutinoside of delphinidin. It can be found in '' Alstroemeria spp.'', ''Berberis spp.'', '' Cissus sicyoides'', '' Hymenocallis spp.'', '' Manihot utilissima'', '' Meliosma tenuis'', '' Musa acuminata'', ...

(delphinidin-3-''O''-rutinoside) can be found in blackcurrant pomace. *

Violdelphin Violdelphin is an anthocyanin, a plant pigment, has been found in the purplish blue flower of '' Aconitum chinense'', in the blue flowers in the genus '' Campanula'' and in the blue flowers of '' Delphinium hybridum''.Structure of Violdelphin, an ...

(delphinidin 3-rutinoside-7-''O''-(6-''O''-(4-(6-''O''-(4-hydroxybenzoyl)-β-D-glucosyl)oxybenzoyl)-β-D-glucoside) is responsible for the purplish-blue flower color of '' Aconitum chinense''. * Nasunin (delphinidin-3-(''p''-coumaroylrutinoside)-5-glucoside) is responsible for the colour of the

eggplant Eggplant ( US, Canada), aubergine ( UK, Ireland) or brinjal (Indian subcontinent, Singapore, Malaysia, South Africa) is a plant species in the nightshade family Solanaceae. ''Solanum melongena'' is grown worldwide for its edible fruit. Mos ...

fruit's purple skin. *s including ''Clitoria ternatea'' ternatins

References

{{Anthocyanins Anthocyanidins

Glycosides

See also

References