Physicochemical Study, Fatty Acid Profile and Antioxidant Potential of the Seed Oil of Polyalthia longifolia angustifolia

Abstract

In the face of worsening malnutrition or undernutrition in poor countries, diversification of food resources remains a high priority for the World Health Organization (WHO). Thus, the present study aims to determine the phytochemical composition and antioxidant activity of the fat extracted from the seeds of Polyalthia longifolia angustifolia. The fatty acid profile of the oil, extracted from the seeds with hexane by the Soxhlet method, was determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis. The physicochemical parameters of the oil were measured according to AFNOR standards. The total phenol and flavonoid contents of the seeds were evaluated by UV-visible spectrophotometric measurement. Antioxidant activity of the oil was determined by the reduction test of ferric ions (Fe3+) of the TPTZ complex to ferrous ion (Fe2+). The results revealed that the oil contains a higher level of oleic acid (63.38%), followed by: palmitic acid (13.80%); linoleic acid (11.74%) and stearic acid (6.24%). The physicochemical parameters of the oil were: refractive index (1.499); acid value (87.69 mg KOH/g of oil); acidity (23.659 g oleic acid/100 g of oil); iodine value (78.26 g I2/100 g of oil); saponification value (179.741 mg KOH/g of oil) and peroxide number (10.85 meq O2 /kg of oil). In short, the seeds of P. l. angustifolia contain fat and phytochemicals with appreciable antioxidant activity. However, further studies are needed to evaluate the toxicity, nutritional and therapeutic properties of the oil before considering the different types of applications that can be made with this oil.