Studies on tropical vegetables. Part 2: Amino and fatty acid composition in seed of cleome (Gynandropsis gynandra L. Briq) selections from Zambia

Abstract

Seed of cleome (Gynandropsis gynandra L. Briq) contained 29·5% crude protein and 27·7% lipid. The highest values of crude protein (31·4%) and lipid (29·6%) were found in 'Purple Stem' while 'Green Stem' had the lowest values of 27·9% protein and 25·1% lipid. Oleic and linoleic acids accounted for 80·7% of the total fatty acids in which linoleic acid was most abundant (58·93%). The high degree of unsaturation is manifest in the high iodine and saponification numbers (123 and 192 respectively) of the oil. Cultigens exhibited slight variation in the proportions of fatty acids and had generally lower stearic (6·55%) than palmitic acid (11·2%). Arachidic and eicosenoic acids occurred in least proportions. Amino acid analysis of defatted meal revealed the abundance of glutamic acid, arginine and aspartic acid in which 'NIRS-2' and 'NIRS-3' had relatively higher values. Lysine, tyrosine and histidine were the lowest. The amino acid profile is comparable to that in leguminous oil seeds. © 1990.