Fatty Acid Profile of Cucumis melo var. acidulus (Culinary Melon) Seed Oil

Abstract

Sir,The melons (Cucumis melo, Cucurbitaceae) are a diverse group of fresh, dessert fruits including C. melo var. cantalupensis, with a rough and warty skin, not netted (cantaloupe), C. melo var. inodorus, with a green, yellow or orange skin (winter melons), C. melo var. reticulatus, with a netted skin (true muskmelon). However, some other melons are considered ‘culinary vegetables’ (C. melo var. acidulus) and they are used as vegetables rather than fruits. C. melo var. acidulus is widely cultivated in India and used as a vegetable throughout the year since it has a long shelf life.The seeds of melons are normally treated as waste products. Some reports available on the composition of melon seeds [1–3] and authors have reported lipid and protein contents of proximally 30 and 54 %, respectively. We were interested in the possibility of extending the range of products from melons and therefore examined the oil content and the fatty acid profile of oil extracted from culinary melon seeds.