Comparison of fatty acid profiles and contents of seed oils recovered from dessert and cider apples and further Rosaceous plants

Abstract

To get a more comprehensive knowledge of oil contents and fatty acid pattern, seed oils from various Rosaceous plants belonging to the subfamilies Maloideae and Rosoideae, respectively, were investigated. For this purpose, isolated seeds of 18 dessert and cider apple (Malus domestica BORKH.) cultivars of different provenances, pear (Pyrus communis L.), rose hip (Rosa canina L.), quince (Cydonia oblonga Mill.), and red chokeberry (Aronia arbutifolia L.) were analyzed for their oil content and fatty acid composition. Oil contents varied significantly, not only among the different genera, but also among cultivars of one species, ranging from 0.8 to 29.4 g/100 g dry matter. Qualitatively, the fatty acid profiles of the investigated seed oils showed good agreement in all representatives of the Rosaceae. Their triacylglycerols were uniformly composed of linoleic, oleic, palmitic, stearic, palmitoleic, α-linolenic, arachidic, gondoic, and behenic acids. Quantitation of individual fatty acids revealed the oils to be rich in mono- and diunsaturated oleic acid and linoleic acid, ranging from 15.1 to 33.3 g/100 g and from 32.5 to 49.7 g/100 g, respectively. As expected, contents of saturated fatty acids were 6–10 times lower. Moreover, apple cultivars showed pronounced differences in yields, numbers, and weights of their seeds. As demonstrated by the data obtained from this study, seeds resulting from the processing of apple, pear, quince, chokeberry (Maloideae), and rose hip (Rosoideae) into juices, jellies, and jams may serve as a promising source for the recovery of nutritionally valuable edible oils.