Food Value and Phytochemical Composition of <i>Luffa </i><i>c</i><i>ylindrica</i> Seed Flour

Abstract

<b> </b>Amino acid, fatty acid and phytochemical compositions of <i>Luffa cylindrica</i> seed flour were investigated. The total amino acid concentration was 72.71g/100g protein and the total essential amino acid concentration was 38.76g/100g protein. Arginine (9.75g/100g protein) was the most concentrated essential amino acid while the Lysine/Arginine ratio was 0.52. The calculated isoelctric point (pI), predicted protein efficiency ratio (P-PER) and limiting amino acid were 5.91, 1.89 and threonine respectively. Linoleic acid (31.47%) was the most abundant fatty acid in the seed flour. Unsaturated fatty acids (66.9%) were of higher concentration than saturated fatty acids (33.07%) while the total concentration of polyunsaturated fatty acids was 52.02%. Flavonoids (4.53%) were the most concentrated phytochemical in the <i>Luffa cylindrica</i> seed flour while saponins, alkaloids and cardiac glycosides were also present. This study shows that <i>Luffa cylindrica</i> seed contains a high proportion of essential amino acids and has a low atherogenic potential. Also, it is a potential source of healthy fat that may be useful as source of food nutrient and phytomedicine.