Physicochemical properties and nutritional composition of seed oil from wild pomegranate varieties in Jolfa, Northern Iran.
Keywords:
Wild pomegranate; Seed oil; Punicic acid; Tocopherols; Sterols; Unsaturated fatty acidsAbstract
Background and Aim: Pomegranate seed oil (PSO), a by-product of juice processing, is a rich source of bioactive lipids that have nutritional and industrial value. This study aimed to analyze the physicochemical features and nutritional composition of seed oils from four wild pomegranate cultivars, including Oshtabin, Kordasht, Qulan, and Duzal, found in the Jolfa region of northern Iran.
Methods: Seed oils were extracted and analyzed for physicochemical parameters, including refractive index (RI), saponification number (SN), peroxide value (PV), and acid value (AV).
Results: The major fatty acid was punicic acid (52–58%), followed by oleic, linoleic, palmitic, and stearic acids, with a total oil content of 14.5–17.3%. The oils contained high concentrations of unsaturated fatty acids (USFA, 91.15–92.13%) and low concentrations of saturated fatty acids (SFA, 6.67–7.22%), yielding favorable USFA/SFA ratios of 12.6–13.8. The acid value of 1.49 mg KOH/g and low peroxide value (1.25 milliequivalents of oxygen per kilogram, meq O₂/kg) suggested good oxidative stability.
Conclusion: wild pomegranate seeds from northern Iran exhibit desirable physicochemical, nutritional, and bioactive characteristics, representing an underutilized resource with diverse potential uses in food, cosmetics, and the pharmaceutical industry.
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