Abstract
Blighia sapida, commonly known as the ackee, is a member of the Sapindaceae family. The tree is native to the forests of West Africa and was brought to the Caribbean and later Florida, where it is cultivated as an orchard crop in some areas. Arilli of the fruit are processed to make canned ackee in brine whereas the seeds, raphe and pods are discarded. Physiochemical studies were conducted on extracts of the seed. Qualitative analysis detected the presence of phenolics and reducing sugars. Aqueous extracts of the seeds (ASE) exhibited free radical scavenging activity and had an inhibitory concentration of 2.59 mg/mL. Gas chromatography mass spectrometry led to the identification of several metabolites including amino acids and fatty acids. Hypoglycin B was isolated utilizing ion exchange chromatography. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy of hypoglycin B detected a band resonating at 3070 cm-1 which may be attributed to the methylenecyclopropane moiety of hypoglycin B. The seeds had a lipid content of 5.72 ± 0.25 % (w/w). The ackee seed oil (ASO) had a saponification value of 152.07 ± 37 and a carotenoid content of 23.7 ± 1.8 mg/kg. The ackee seeds are a source of bioactive components.
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