Chemical Composition and Nutritional Characteristics of the Seed Oil of Wild Lathyrus, Lens and Pisum Species from Southern Spain

The fatty acid composition of the seed oil of 19 wild legume species from southern Spain was analyzed by gas chromatography. The main seed oil fatty acids ranged from C14:0 to C20:0. Among unsaturated fatty acids, the most abundant were linoleic, oleic and linolenic acids, except for Lathyrus angulatus, L. aphaca, L. clymenum, L. sphaericus and L. nigricans where C18:3 contents were higher than C18:1 contents. Palmitic acid was the most abundant saturated acid in studied species, ranging from 11.6% in Lathyrus sativus to 19.3% in Lens nigricans. All studied species showed higher amounts of total unsaturated fatty acids than saturated ones. Among studied species, the ω6/ω3 ratio was variable, ranging from 2.0% in L. nigricans to 13.8% in L. sativus, there being eight species in which the ω6/ω3 ratio was below 5. The fatty acids observed in these plants supports the use of these plants as a source of important dietary lipids.This work was supported by grant AGR-711 from the Junta de Andalucía (Spain).Peer reviewe

Chelating, antioxidant and antiproliferative activity of Vicia sativa polyphenol extracts

The metal chelating activity, antioxidant properties, and the effect on cell growth of a polyphenol extract from Vicia sativa have been investigated, and compared to those of soybean. The extracts from V. sativa seeds contained three and five times more polyphenols and flavonoids than soybean, respectively. The soybean polyphenol extracts showed higher copper and iron chelating activity than those from V. sativa, although polyphenols from V. sativa were more effective in preventing β-carotene oxidation and showed higher reducing power and scavenging activity than soybean polyphenols. In addition, V. sativa polyphenols were toxic to THP-1 leukemic cells, as opposed to polyphenols extracted from soybean that did not show any antiproliferative activity at similar concentrations. In conclusion, V. sativa polyphenol extracts show promising antioxidant and antiproliferative activities that may be of interest from a functional point of view and for the revalorization of this ancient crop.This work was supported by grant AGR-711 from Junta de Andalucía (Spain).Peer reviewe