Tocopherols in Cultivated Apple Malus sp. Seeds: Composition, Variability and Specificity.

The seeds of 111 Malus sp. different fruit use (dessert and cider apples) cultivars/genotypes developed in 18 countries were analysed to evaluate composition of tocopherol homologues and identify crop-specific profile, including diploid, triploid, and tetraploid apple cultivars with and without scab-resistance to ensure high genetic diversity. The percentage of individual tocopherols was as follows: alpha-tocopherol (alpha-T) (38.36%), beta-tocopherol (beta-T) (40.74%), gamma-tocopherol (gamma-T) (10.93%), and delta-tocopherol (delta-T) (9.97%), represented by average measurements of 17.48, 18.56, 4.98, and 4.54 mg/100 g dry weight, respectively. The values of the variation coefficient showed high variability for delta (0.695) and gamma (0.662) homologue content, whereas measurements of alpha-T and beta-T were less variable (coefficient of variation 0.203 and 0.256, respectively). The unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA) revealed three main cultivar groups characterised by almost equal content of all four tocopherol homologues (Group I), high concentrations of alpha-T and beta-T, but very low content of gamma-T and delta-T (Group II), and relatively high average content of alpha-T and beta-T, but higher gamma-T and delta-T content (Group III). Specific tocopherol homologues showed association with certain valuable traits, such as harvesting time (total content of tocopherols) and resistance to apple scab (alpha-T and total content of tocopherols). This study represents the first large-scale tocopherol homologue (alpha, beta, gamma, and delta) screening in apple seeds. The dominant tocopherol homologues in cultivated apple cultivars are alpha-T and beta-T, with the prevalence of alpha-T or beta-T depending on genotype. It is a unique finding due to the rare occurrence of beta-T in the plant world and is considered a unique feature of the species.

Profiling of the lipophilic components of seed oils recovered from twelve Japanese quince (Chaenomeles japonica) genotypes.

The seeds and oil yield and profile/levels of fatty acids, tocopherols and phytosterols in seed oils of twelve Japanese quince (Chaenomeles japonica) genotypes were studied. The seeds and oil yield ranged from 3.8 to 5.7% w/w fresh fruit, and 10.9 to 14.6% w/w dry weight seeds, respectively. The range of three predominated fatty acids C16:0, C18:1 and C18:2 in the seed oil of twelve Japanese quince genotypes were 8.1-9.8, 37.5-48.1, and 40.1-50.3%, respectively. α-Tocopherol and ß-sitosterol were the main minor lipophilic compounds detected in all investigated genotypes. The percentage of predomination of α-tocopherol and ß-sitosterol in each investigated genotype was very similar and amounted to 97-99% of total tocopherols and 76-80% of total phytosterols, respectively. The range of total content tocopherols and phytosterols in 12 genotypes of Japanese quince were 91.9-129.3 and 7830-14166 mg/100 g oil, respectively.

Fatty Acid Profile and Squalene, Tocopherol, Carotenoid, Sterol Content of Seven Selected Consumed Legumes.

Legume seeds (Fabaceae) of seven species Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (guar), Glycine max (soybean), Lablab purpureus (lablab-bean), Macrotyloma uniflorum (kulthi bean), Phaseolus vulgaris (common bean), Trigonella foenum-graecum (fenugreek) and Vigna unguiculata (cowpea) were studied. The oil yield ranged from 1.2 to 20.2% dw, in the lablab-bean and soybean, respectively. The polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) constituted the largest part (46-78%) of total fatty acids in studied legumes. γ-Tocopherol was the predominant tocopherol (T) homologue (61-95%) in most of the tested legumes with the exception of fenugreek (α-T, 97%) and cowpea (γ-T and δ-T, nearly equal). The ß-sitosterol was the main sterol (51-56%) in most legumes. While in cowpea, lablab-bean and kulthi bean the main sterols were ß-sitosterol and Δ5-stigmasterol (28-37% and 14-42%, respectively). Squalene was detected only in kulthi bean and lablab-bean (58 and 284 mg/100 g oil). The total concentration of carotenoids, tocochromanols, and sterols in the studied legumes was 0.2-9.2, 12.4-276.0, and 350-8,542 mg/100 g oil, respectively. Based on the levels of minor lipophilic compounds of this study, C. tetragonoloba, T. foenum-graecum and G. max seem to have a better nutritional value compared to P. vulgaris, V. unguiculata, L. purpureus, and M. uniflorum.

Selected Uncommon Legumes as a Source of Essential Fatty Acids, Tocopherols, Tocotrienols, Sterols, Carotenoids, and Squalene.

The seeds of nine species belonging to the Fabaceae family (Cassia alata, Cassia uniflora, Cassia obtusifolia, Cassia tora, Crotalaria albida, Crotalaria juncea, Crotalaria pallida, Indigofera tinctoria, and Tephrosia purpurea) were studied. The oil yield ranged from 2.0 to 9.6% dw, in the seeds of I. tinctoria and T. purpurea, respectively. The unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) were the predominant group of fatty acids (41-74%) in the investigated samples. The sum of tocopherol homologues α and γ constituted 90-100% of total tocochromanols identified in each species. The ß-sitosterol, campesterol, and Δ5-stigmasterol were the main sterols in most of the samples, however, in some of the seeds considerable levels of Δ5-avenasterol, Δ5,24-stigmastadienol, 24-ethylcholest-7-en-3beta-ol, and cycloartenol were also determined. Although the studied seeds were marked by relatively low yield of oil, the predomination of UFA, as well as relevant quantities of tocochromanols, carotenoids, sterols, and squalene (144.3-444.8, 4.1-43.1, 603.2-2590.2, and 0-88.1 mg/100 g oil, respectively), thus, the studied seeds can be considered as an alternative source of valuable ingredients for human nutrition.

Impact of Cultivar on Profile and Concentration of Lipophilic Bioactive Compounds in Kernel Oils Recovered from Sweet Cherry (Prunus avium L.) by-Products.

Lipophilic bioactive compounds in oils recovered from the kernels of seven sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) cultivars, harvested at single location in 2013, were studied. Oil yield in sweet cherry ranged between 30.3-40.3 % (w/w) dw. The main fatty acids were oleic acid (39.62-49.92 %), linoleic acid (31.13-38.81 %), α-eleostearic acid (7.23-10.73 %) and palmitic acid (5.59-7.10 %), all four represented approximately 95 % of the total detected fatty acids. The ranges of total tocochromanols and sterols were between 83.1-111.1 and 233.6-419.4 mg/100 g of oil, respectively. Regardless of the cultivar, the γ-tocopherol and ß-sitosterol were the main lipophilic minor bioactive compounds. The content of the carotenoids and squalene were between 0.38-0.62 and 60.9-127.7 mg/100 g of oil, respectively. Three significant correlations were found between oil yield and total contents of sterols (r = -0.852), tocochromanols (r = -0.880) and carotenoids (r = -0.698) in sweet cherry kernel oils. The oil yield, as well as the content of lipophilic bioactive compounds in oil was significantly affected by the cultivar.

Impact of Species and Variety on Concentrations of Minor Lipophilic Bioactive Compounds in Oils Recovered from Plum Kernels.

The profile of bioactive compounds (carotenoids, tocopherols, tocotrienols, phytosterols, and squalene) in oils recovered from the kernels of 28 plum varieties of hexaploid species Prunus domestica L. and diploid plums Prunus cerasifera Ehrh. and their crossbreeds were studied. Oil yields in plum kernels of both P. cerasifera and P. domestica was in wide ranges of 22.6-53.1 and 24.2-46.9% (w/w) dw, respectively. The contents of total tocochromanols, carotenoids, phytosterols, and squalene was significantly affected by the variety and ranged between 70.7 and 208.7 mg/100 g of oil, between 0.41 and 3.07 mg/100 g of oil, between 297.2 and 1569.6 mg/100 g of oil, and between 25.7 and 80.4 mg/100 g of oil, respectively. Regardless of the cultivar, ß-sitosterol and γ-tocopherol were the main minor lipophilic compounds in plum kernel oils and constituted between 208.5 and 1258.7 mg/100 g of oil and between 60.5 and 182.0 mg/100 g of oil, respectively. Between the studied plum species, significant differences were recorded for δ-tocopherol (p = 0.007), 24-methylenecycloartanol (p = 0.038), and citrostadienol (p = 0.003), but they were insufficient for discrimination by PCA.

Tocochromanols composition in kernels recovered from different apricot varieties: RP-HPLC/FLD and RP-UPLC-ESI/MS(n) study.

Composition of tocochromanols in kernels recovered from 16 different apricot varieties (Prunus armeniaca L.) was studied. Three tocopherol (T) homologues, namely α, γ and δ, were quantified in all tested samples by an RP-HPLC/FLD method. The γ-T was the main tocopherol homologue identified in apricot kernels and constituted approximately 93% of total detected tocopherols. The RP-UPLC-ESI/MS(n) method detected trace amounts of two tocotrienol homologues α and γ in the apricot kernels. The concentration of individual tocopherol homologues in kernels of different apricots varieties, expressed in mg/100 g dwb, was in the following range: 1.38-4.41 (α-T), 42.48-73.27 (γ-T) and 0.77-2.09 (δ-T). Moreover, the ratio between individual tocopherol homologues α:γ:δ was nearly constant in all varieties and amounted to approximately 2:39:1.