PREPONDERANCE OF PALMITOLEIC ACID IN MORINGA OLEIFERA Lam. (Moringaceae) SEEDS AND LEAVES FROM CHEMICAL ANALYSIS AND GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY

Abstract

Moringa oleifera is the most widespread species of the genus Moringa, the only genus in the family Moringaceae. It is a very popular plant used in traditional herbal medicine. Different parts of the plant contain a profile of important minerals and phytochemicals. The leaves and seeds are good sources of proteins, vitamins, beta-carotene, amino acids, and phenolic compounds. Study was carried out to check chemical constituents of leaves and seed oil of M. oleifera obtained from Ikorodu, Lagos State. Nigeria. Dried plant parts were pulverized and subjected to proximate analysis while the oils were extracted from the seeds with hexane using Sohxlet apparatus and analyzed with gas chromatography. The chemical contents of M. oleifera leaves obtained through proximate analysis showed it had more protein than the seeds with 45.28% protein while the seeds had 40.10%. the most prevalent mineral elements in M. oleifera are magnesium and calcium which were found to be 49.50 and 54.85 (mg/100g) in the seed, 42.80 and 54.95 (mg/100g) in the leaves respectively. Gas chromatographic analysis of the oils showed the presence of various fatty acids and other organic compounds with palmitoleic acid being the most abundant with 48.41% yield of total oils and oleic acid being 11.45% much less than earlier reported. Palmitoleic acid has shown possible influence in fatty liver deposition/production, insulin action and fatty acid synthase. This makes M. oleifera seeds very important new source of natural therapy for hyperglycemia and hypertriglyceridemia.