Abstract
Stevia leaves contain various components, such as flavonoids, labdanes, chlorophylls, sterols, triterpenoids, mono-disaccharides, organic acids and inorganic salts. Stevia is known to accumulate diterpenoid steviol glycosides, which are approximately 300 times sweeter than regular sugar. Stevioside and rebaudioside A are the main diterpenic glycosides in stevia. Steviol glycosides are the secondary metabolites responsible for the sweetness of stevia. The main objectives of the present study were to determine the concentrations of diterpenic glycosides (stevioside and rebaudioside A) in three stevia varieties (Stevia rebaudiana) via the HPLC-UV technique and to amplify the UGT76G1 gene by PCR using gene-specific primers. The expression levels of the UGT76G1 gene were determined in the three stevia varieties. The PCR products were sequenced and analyzed, and the nucleotide sequences of the UGT76G1 gene were submitted to GenBank and assigned to the following three varieties: Egy1 (MH087463), China1 (MH087464) and Sponti (MH087465). Cluster analysis was used to separate the three varieties into two major clusters based on their phylogenetic relationship. In addition, chemical analysis was carried out to evaluate stevioside and rebaudioside A. The present study concluded that Egy1 and Sponti are closely related varieties as they fall in the same cluster, while China1 forms a separate cluster. Bioprospecting studies could be useful for selection of superior ecotypes of Stevia rebaudiana.