FATTY ACIDS OF CATALPA BIGNONIOIDES AND OTHER BIGNONIACEAE SEED OILS

Abstract

Seed oils of 11 species of Bignoniaceae, representing four of the five tribes of the family, were analyzed by gas–liquid chromatography and other techniques. The fatty acids of Catalpa bignonioides oil had the following composition: trans-9,trans-12-octadecadienoic 5, trans-9,trans-11,cis-13-octadecatrienoic 31, palmitic 5, stearic 1, octadecenoic 8, linoleic 50%. One of the five samples of this species showed evidence of an appreciable amount of conjugated dienoic acid.Jacaranda semiserrata had 33% of a cis,trans,cis trienoic acid. Kigelia pinnata had 57% of a non-conjugated trienoic acid. The other eight species had the ordinary palmitic–oleic–linoleic composition. The total fatty acid composition of the oils is reported.The tribe Tecomeae yielded both conjugated and non-conjugated seed oils. Single species of each of the other three tribes gave non-conjugated oils.