LIPID PROFILES OF FIVE VARIETIES ARTOCARPUS SEED OILS BY GC-MS- A COMPARATIVE STUDY.

In recent years, the significance of polyunsaturated fatty acids analysis has gained much attention because of their various biological activities in health and disease, especially the n-3 and n-6 fatty acids. The current proportional cram endeavors on providing qualitatively the fatty acid composition of hexane extracted seed oils of five Artocarpus species specifically Artocarpus heterophyllus, Artocarpus integrifolia, Artocarpus inscicus, Artocarpus hirsitus and Artocarpus integer. All the extracted oils were thick yellowish in colour having pungent odour with a yield of 40%. Fallouts evidently indicate that the intricate fatty acid profile was experiential for A. integer with seven peaks subsequently A. heterophyllus through five peaks, next to that A.integrifolia and A.hirsitus by four peaks each, lastly A.inscicus seed oil had merely three peaks. Essential fatty acid 9, 12 – Octadecadienoic acid, methyl ester (C19H34O2) and 10, 13- Octadecadienoic acid, methyl ester (C19H34O2 ) were found in all tested hexane seed oil free fatty acid methyl ester fractions except A. inscicus and in A. heterophyllus in that order. These findings demonstrated that essential oils of five Artocarpus species seeds were a complex mixture of numerous fatty acids and have great potential to be used as a source for natural health dietary products.