IDENTIFICATION OF PHENOLIC COMPOUNDS FROM FRUITS OF VACCINIUM PADIFOLIUM BY UHPLC-PDA AND LC-ESI/MSMS Priscilla Porto-Figueira1, Pedro Berenguer1, Donato Rodrigues1, J.A. Figueira1, Nelson Barros2, Paulo Fernandes2, José S. Câmara1,3 1 CQM/UMa – Centro de Química da Madeira, Campus Universitário da Penteada, 9000-390 Funchal Laboratório Regional de Veterinária e Segurança Alimentar, Caminho das Quebradas de Baixo, 79, 9000-254 Funchal, Portugal 3 Centro de Competências de Ciências Exactas e da Engenharia, Universidade da Madeira, Campus Universitário da Penteada, 9000-390, Funchal, Portugal 2 Vaccinium padifolium is an endemic specie of the Laurisilva forest, a UNESCO World Heritage Centre located in the volcanic islands of Madeira archipelago, in the Atlantic ocean. This plant belongs to Vaccininum genus, whose fruits (berries) are rich in many bioactive compounds, particularly vitamin C, E, carotenoids and a high content of anthocyanins and phenolic compounds. Vaccinium padifolium berries are widely used in Madeira Island for liqueurs, jams and others food derivatives. In traditional and local ethnopharmacology this fruit is frequently used against bronchitis, cough, dysentery and others, being also exported for commercial production of ophthalmic specialities. Therefore, there is a great interest in identifying Vaccinium padifolium berries bioactive composition. In this study, such characterization was performed using a quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe (QuEChERS) strategy to extract the phenolics, followed by a LC-ESI/MSMS characterization. A total of 28 phenolic compounds were identified for the first time in V. padifolium, of which 18 were selected and quantified using UHPLC-PDA. The results showed that the predominant phenolic compound in V. padifolium berries is chlorogenic acid followed by epigallocatechin, quercetin-3-glucoside caffeic acid and myricetin. These data shows that this fruit contains a diversificated phenolic composition that is certainly responsible for its awareness as a functional food. Keywords: Polyphenols, V. padifolium, QuEChERS, LC-ESI/MSMS, UHPLC-PDA Acknowledgements: The authors acknowledge the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) through the Pluriannual base funding (Project PEst-OE/QUI/UI0674/2014) and MS Portuguese Networks (RNEM/2014) and the FEDER (Transnational Cooperation MAC 2007-2013 Program) through AVC-MaC-CV (MAC/3/M251) Project for the financial support.