Abstract: A HPLC method for the determination of lutein in leaves of sweet potato was developed in this research for selecting the breed which has the highest content of lutein. The analysis was carried on a Waters SunFire^TM C₁₈(150 mm×4.6 mm,5 μm) column. The mobile phase was methanol-water (95:5, v/v), the flow-rate was 0.8 mL·min^-1 and wavelength was 445 nm. Linearity was found in the range of 5~100 μg·mL^-1, the average recovery was 99.5%, and the relative standard deviations for lutein was 1.9%(n=5). This method is reliable, accurate and suitable for the determination of lutein in leaves of sweet potato. There were significant differences in the lutein content of most samples tested and among them, Sushu No.8 are the highest.

Key words: lutein, sweet potato, HPLC