Proximate and Fatty Acid Compositions of Four Therapeutic and Nutritional Plants for two Consecutive Years

Abstract

The study aims to investigate and compare the proximate composition and the fatty acid profiles of Allium orientale Boiss., Eremurus spectabilis M. Bieb., Anchusa officinalis L. and Arum elongatum Steven collected in spring 2020 and 2021. C16:0, C18:0, C18:1?9 and C18:2?6 were found major fatty acids in four species. Essential fatty acids C18:2?6 (34.4 and 31.2%) and C18:3?3 (21.4 and 16.5%) were detected significantly high in A. elongatum in both years, respectively. The proportion of toxic C22:1?9 in E. spectabilis (4.6 and 4.1%) was found close to the danger limit (5%). The C18:1?9 level in A. orientale (27.3 and 29.9%) and A. officinalis (33.2 and 29.51%) was significantly higher than the C18:1?9 level in E. spectabilis and A. elongatum in both years. C24:1?9, involved in the biosynthesis and maintenance of nerve cell myelin, was found in relatively good levels in A. orientale (2.1 and 1.9%) and A. officinalis (2.8 and 2.2%). The ?SFA level was found to be higher in A. orientale (53.9 and 52.1%), E. spectabilis (52.4 and 55.82%) and A. officinalis (48.9 and 50.80%) compared to their ?MUFA and ?PUFA levels in both years. Conversely, in A. elongatum, the ?PUFA ratio was found to be quite high (55.8 and 47.7%). The total lipid level varied between 1% and 0.4% in 2020, and 0.6% and 0.9% in 2021. Crude protein content was found to be low, around 5% on average in both years. As a result, the study clarified that although the plant fatty acid profiles are quantitatively different, they are qualitatively similar, and that the species data will also contribute to the literature and conscious consumption. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to The National Academy of Sciences, India.