Echinacea species are important medicinal plants with significant therapeutic potential and are widely used in the pharmaceutical industry. Different Echinacea species exhibit various chemical compositions and bioactivities. In the present study, the chemical differences, antioxidant ingredients, and diversity mechanisms of Echinacea species were studied. The aerial parts and roots of six different Echinacea species (E. purpurea (L.) Moench; E. pallida (Nutt.) Nutt.; E. angustifolia DC.; E. atrorubens (Nutt.) Nutt.; E. paradoxa (Norton) Britton var. paradoxa; E. sanguinea Nutt.) were collected for investigation. Through non-target metabolomics following targeted quantitative analysis, chicoric acid, caftaric acid, and echinacoside were found to be the main different components of Echinacea species. Coincidentally, these three chemicals were also the dominant antioxidant ingredients of Echinacea extracts, as determined by correlation analysis between chemical contents and in vitro antioxidant activities. Based on the cloning, sequencing, and measurement of the identified chicoric acid biosynthetic genes, the diversity of chicoric acid and caftaric acid among Echinacea species was determined by the precursor content, as well as by the expression levels of key biosynthetic genes. Overall, these results clarified the chemical differences and the possible mechanisms, as well as the bioactive ingredients, in Echinacea species and can guide the selection of Echinacea species for different industrial applications.

紫锥菊属是重要的药用植物，具有显着的治疗潜力，广泛用于制药工业。不同的紫锥菊种类表现出不同的化学成分和生物活性。本研究对紫锥菊属植物的化学差异、抗氧化成分和多样性机制进行了研究。六种不同紫锥菊属（E. purpurea (L.) Moench; E. pallida (Nutt.) Nutt.; E. angustifolia DC.; E. atrorubens (Nutt.) Nutt.; E. paradoxa ( Norton) Britton var. paradoxa ; E. sanguineaNutt.) 被收集起来进行调查。通过靶向定量分析后的非靶向代谢组学，发现菊苣酸、咖啡豆酸和紫锥菊苷是紫锥菊属植物的主要不同成分。巧合的是，根据化学成分与体外抗氧化活性的相关性分析，这三种化学物质也是紫锥菊提取物的主要抗氧化成分。基于已鉴定的菊苣酸生物合成基因的克隆、测序和测定，紫锥菊中菊苣酸和卡夫塔酸的多样性物种由前体含量以及关键生物合成基因的表达水平决定。总体而言，这些结果阐明了紫锥菊物种的化学差异和可能的机制，以及生物活性成分，并可以指导不同工业应用的紫锥菊物种的选择。