CONTENTS AND COMPOSITION OF SEED LIPIDS OF SILYBUM-MARIANUM GAERTN IN DEPENDENCE ON POSITION AND TIME OF SOWING AND HARVESTING

Abstract

Silybum marianum Gaertn., the milk thistle is no oil plant in the fullest sense of the word, but is cultivated as medicinal plant in various parts of the world. Besides the flavonoides, having an antihepatotoxic effect, die fruits contain about 30% of fatty oil which is separated before winning the active substances. The content of raw fat of the here investigated wild plants from West Turkey varied between 27.9 and 33.7% and the amount of linoleic acid in the oil between 54.5 and 67.6%. The influences of region of cultivation as well as season of sowing and harvesting on fat content and fatty acid distribution can largely be explained as temperature effects.