ABSTRACT
Aim: The aim of the present study was to characterize Lepidium sativum seed for phytochemicals, fatty acid composition and antioxidant properties.Methodology: Extraction of phytochemicals in different solvents, estimation of phenolics and flavonoids, physio-chemical properties, antioxidant assay by DPPH method was carried out. Seed oil content was determined by modified cold percolation extraction method and TD-NMR, followed by fatty acid compositional analysis using GLC. Results: The perusal of data revealed that the total oil content varied from 21.36% to 24.38%, and the major fatty acids identified were linolenic acid (24.447%) followed by oleic acid (24.413%) and palmitic acid (12.278%) . Physio-chemical and phytochemical characteristics were estimated for useful functional properties and markers viz. alkaloids, sugar and proteins. L. sativum seeds exhibited high antioxidant potential (0.063mg ml-1) compared to standard compounds such as ascorbic acid, rutin and quercetin.
ABSTRACT
Amaranths are an important group of plants and include grain, vegetable and ornamental types. Despite the economic importance of the amaranths, there is very little information available about the extent and nature of genetic diversity present in the genus Amaranthus at molecular level. We now report the randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) profiles of different species of Amaranthus as well as different accessions of the species. These RAPD analyses have been carried out using 65 arbitrary sequence decamer primers. From the RAPD data, an UPGMA dendrogram illustrating the inter-as well as intra-species relationships has been computed. The putative hybrid origin ofA. dubious from A. hybridus and A. spinosus is also ruled out by the RAPD data. The trends of species relationships amongst the amaranths determined by RAPDs is consistent with their cytogenetic and evolutionary relationships that have already been determined.