LIPIDS OF THE SEEDS OF Astragalus sieversianus PALL
Abstract
Astragalus sieversianus Pall. is one of the promising medicinal plants of the flora of Uzbekistan, naturally growing in the foothill and adyr regions of the country. Representatives of the genus Astragalus are an important source of biologically active compounds, including flavonoids, saponins, polysaccharides, and other secondary metabolites. The aim of the study was to investigate the lipid content and composition of the seeds of A. sieversianus collected in the Kashkadarya region. Neutral lipids (NL) were extracted from ground seeds with petroleum benzine (boiling point 72-80˚C) using a Soxhlet apparatus. Polar glycolipids (GL) and phospholipids (PhL) were subsequently extracted from the remaining meal with a chloroform-methanol mixture. The composition of the NL and PL classes was determined by thin-layer chromatography (TLC) on silica gel, while the carotenoid content was determined by spectrophotometry. The content of neutral lipids in the seeds was 7.6% on a dry weight basis, phospholipids accounted for 1.17%, and the carotenoid content was 57.8 mg%. The carotenoid content in the neutral lipid fraction was 667 mg%. The neutral lipid fraction contained triacylglycerols, hydrocarbons, carotenoids, fatty acid esters of phytosterols and triterpenols, free fatty acids, free triterpenols, and phytosterols. Fatty acids were isolated from the neutral lipid fraction and analyzed as their methyl esters by gas chromatography (GC) using an Agilent 8860 GC gas chromatograph.
Publication Details
This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.