The Fatty Acid Profile and Phenolic Composition of Descurainia sophia Seeds Extracted by Supercritical CO₂

Abstract

Oil and phenolics were extracted from Descurainia sophia (Sophia) seeds by a supercritical CO2 system. Extractions were conducted in two sequential steps, first using 100 % CO2 and then adding 10 % ethanol as co‐solvent. The extracts were collected in each step using two separate collectors operating at different pressures. The extraction run was 3 and 4 h for the first period, and 2 h for the second period. The majority of the oil was collected in the first extraction period while phenolic compounds were obtained in the second extraction period. A combined mode of static/dynamic extraction (3 h running and 1 h soaking in CO2) was also used in the first extraction period, which enhanced the total extraction yield (29.3 ± 0.5 %) and was comparable to the 4 h extraction yield (31.4 ± 0.1 %). The total fatty acid (FA) content of oil in collector 1 (0.94 g) was nearly twice that in collector 2 (0.60 g). The oil contained 14 FAs with α‐linolenic being predominant (48.5 %), with a total 91.1 % unsaturated FAs, a ω3/ω6 ratio of 2.7, and an erucic acid content of 6.2 %. More than 10 phenolic compounds were detected by HPLC in the Sophia seed extracts of which sinapic acid was the dominant compound. Sophia seed extracts showed high levels of antioxidant activity. These results suggest that Sophia seed oil and phenolics have the potential for functional food and pharmaceutical applications.

Functional properties of protein isolates from camelina (Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz) and flixweed (sophia, Descurainis sophia L.) seed meals

“…Sophia seeds have been used as a traditional medicine to relieve cough and chest discomfort, prevent asthma, and treat cancer. It can be found throughout Canada as well as in Iran and China (HadiNezhad et al 2015). The seed contains 28 % protein, 33 % oil, and 4 % ash (Rahman et al 2018).…”

Biological Activities of Camelina and Sophia Seeds Phenolics: Inhibition of LDL Oxidation, DNA Damage, and Pancreatic Lipase and α‐Glucosidase Activities

“…Sophia plant is native to Northern Europe, Asia, South Africa, New Zealand, and both South and North America and can be found throughout Canada, most abundantly in Prairie provinces. The seeds of sophia contain 28% protein, 33% oil (69% PUFA, 22% monounsaturated fatty acids, 9% saturated fatty acids) and 4% various essential minerals (HadiNezhad and others ; FAO 1997). The meal of sophia is also rich in phenolic acids, flavonoids, and flavonoid glycosides (Rahman and others ).…”

“…The seeds of sophia have been used as a traditional medicine to relieve cough, prevent asthma, and promote urination in China, India, and Iran (Khan and others ). Although there have been a few studies on the free phenolics and their antioxidant activity in camelina (Terpinc and others , ;) and sophia meals (Sun and others ; HadiNezhad and others ), there are no published data on total phenolics contents (free, esterified, and insoluble‐bound) in both camelina and sophia seeds. In this work, free, esterified and insoluble‐bound phenolics from defatted camelina and sophia seed were extracted and their in vitro antioxidant and biological activities estimated.…”

Identification of Epigenetic Mechanisms Involved in the Anti-Asthmatic Effects of Descurainia sophia Seed Extract Based on a Multi-Omics Approach

“…These bioactive compounds exhibit great potential against many diseases [ 10 , 11 ], including asthma [ 12 ]. Descurainia sophia Webb ex Prantl, which contains several such bioactive compounds [ 13 , 14 ], is one of the original species of Descurainia Sophia (L.) Webb ex Prantl [ 15 ]. The seeds of this plant have been used traditionally to treat diseases and symptoms such as cough, asthma and edema [ 16 , 17 ].…”