Studies on six indigenous seed oils

Abstract

Seed oils from six indigenous species namely Myristica fragrans (Jaiphal), Citrulus vulgaris (Tarbuj), Nelumbo nucifera (Kamal), Rumex maritimus (Red bijband), Strychnos potatorum (Nirmali), and Celastrus peniculatus (Malkangni) have been studied and their fatty acid composition was determined by Gas Chromatography. All the seed fats resembled the simple "linoleic-oleic-palmitic type". The main components were oleic and linoleic acids, together forming 58.7-75.9%. The total content of saturated acids varied from 16.5 to 33.1%.