Physicochemical properties and chemical composition of Seinat (Cucumis melo var. tibish) seed oil and its antioxidant activity

Abstract

Seinat (Cucumis melo var. tibish) seeds were analyzed for their physiochemical properties and chemical composition of the oil in addition to antioxidant activity. The crude oil content was 31.1%, while the moisture, fiber, protein, ash and total sugar contents were 4.2%, 24.7%, 28.5%, 4.3%, and 6.9%, respectively. The main fatty acids were linoleic, oleic, palmitic, and stearic acids (61.10%, 18.75%, 10.37% and 9.18%, respectively). The total phenolic content was 28.17 mg·g-1 oil. Seinat seed oil also contained a good level of tocopherols; of which λ-tocopherol (63.43%) showed the highest content. β-sitosterol was found at 289 mg·100g-1 oil of total sterols (302 mg·100g -1) in the oil. The crude oil showed a good antioxidant activity in four assays including reducing power, β-carotene bleaching inhibition activity, ABTS and DPPH radical scavenging activities. © 2014 CSIC.