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Compared to its leaf, few studies have been reported on the seeds of Moringa oleifera Lam. Metabolites profiling analysis of M. oleifera seed methanolic extract (ME) and its fixed oil (MO) was attempted via LC/MS and GC/MS. LC/MS analysis of M. oleifera seeds annotated 84 peaks of which glucosinolates and their corresponding acetyl isomers were abundant. GC/MS of seed oil revealed the abundance of fatty acids with oleic acid at 34.3%. ME exhibited significant anti- Helicobacter pylori activity with MIC 50 0.92 µg/mL, nearly one-half that of Clarithromycin. Fixed oil (MO) showed a nonselective anti-inflammatory effect with IC 50 = 24.4 ± 0.8 µg/mL correlated to Ibuprofen. To unravel the mechanism of the anti- H. pylori activity a molecular docking study of the principal components of the ME has been performed, using H. pylori urease enzyme. Interactions with Ni 2+ ions and amino acid residue in the active site, which are crucial for the enzyme's biochemical role, are evidenced.

The supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) of volatile and fixed oil from milled parsley ( Petroselinum crispum L.) seeds, using CO 2 as solvent, is presented in this study. Extraction experiments were carried out in two steps: at pressures of (90 or 300) bar and temperature of 40 °C. The first extraction step, performed at 90 bar, produced a volatile fraction mainly formed by apiole (82.1%) and myristicin (11.4%). The volatile oil yield was 2.6% by weight of the charge. The second extraction step, carried out at 300 bar produced a fixed oil at a yield of 0.4% by weight. The most represented fatty acids in P. crispum fixed oil were 18:1 n-12 (49.9%), 18:2 n-6 (18.2%), 18:1 n-9 (11.8%), and 16:0 (7.4%). In particular, the unsaturated fatty acids 18:1 n-12 and 18:1 n-9 averaged 182.2 mg/g and 92.1 mg/g of oil extract, respectively. The quality of the oils extracted by SFE, in terms of its chemical composition, was compared to the oils obtained by hydrodistillation (HD) in a Clevenger apparatus and by solvent extraction (SE) using n -hexane in a Soxhlet apparatus. The antioxidant properties were determined by means of the ABTS assay. The results indicated that the fixed oil possessed low antioxidant activity (EC 50 = 0.4 mg/mL) and the volatile oil had no antioxidant activity. The total phenolic content, expressed as concentration of gallic acid (gallic acid equivalent, GAE), of the fixed oil was 1.5 mg/g. The fixed oil found to have inhibitory effects against α-glucosidase, the volatile oil is active on acetylcholinesterase (AChE), tyrosinase, and α-glucosidase. Both samples have weak inhibitory activity on α-amylase and no activity on butyrylcholinesterase (BChE).

We studied the chemical composition and the nutritional properties of fixed oils extracted from seeds and pericarps of the medicinal plant Whitania somnifera . W. somnifera wild germplasm was collected in Sardinia (Italy) and cultivated in Campidano subregion (Southern Sardinia). The main fatty acids of seed oil were 18:2 n-6 (53%, 73.6 mg/g of dry weight), 18:1 n-9 (21%, 29.3 mg/g of dry weight), 16:0 (19%), and 18:0 (4%). Trilinolein and dilinolein derivatives represented the main seed oil triacylglycerols. Linoleic (40%, 67.7 mg/g of dry weight), oleic (29%, 48.7 mg/g of dry weight), palmitic (22%), stearic (4%) and α-linolenic (3%), were the main fatty acids in pericarp oil, with higher total level of monounsaturated fatty acids than seed oil, while monolinolein and dilinolein derivatives represented the main triacylglycerols. The results of this study qualify Sardinian W. somnifera berries as an interesting source of oils with nutritional properties.

In this investigation, we aim to study, for the first time, the effect of the growing area on tocopherols, carotenoids and fatty acid content of Pistacia lentiscus fixed oil. Fruits were harvested from eight different sites located in the north and the centre of Tunisia. Tocopherols, carotenoids and fatty acid content of the fixed oils were determined. The highest carotenoid content was exhibited by Feija oil (10.57 mg/kg of oil). Oueslatia and Tabarka oils displayed the highest α-tocopherol content (96.79 and 92.79 mg/kg of oil, respectively). Three major fatty acids were determined: oleic, palmitic and linoleic acids. Oleic acid was the main fatty acid presenting more than 50% of the total fatty acid content. Kebouche oil presented the highest oleic acid content (55.66%). All these results highlight the richness of carotenoids, tocopherols and unsaturated fatty acids in P. lentiscus seed oil and underscore the nutritional value of this natural product.