Tea seeds resulting from the cultivation of tea in many parts of the world, often regarded as waste, have been found to contain oil of exceptional quality that can be harnessed for use as an oleo-chemical or chemical ...Tea seeds resulting from the cultivation of tea in many parts of the world, often regarded as waste, have been found to contain oil of exceptional quality that can be harnessed for use as an oleo-chemical or chemical intermediate. A comparative study was carried out to examine the free fatty acid profiles of crude oils chemically extracted by Soxhlet extraction from tea seeds collected from different cultivars of Kenyan tea. All the tea seeds of the studied tea cultivars yielded oil, though to different extents (p > 0.05) after the 8-hour extraction. The oils were golden yellow in color. The contents of oleic, linoleic and stearic acids in all the crude test oils have no significant difference (p > 0.05) from each other. However, statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) in the linolenic and palmitic acids contents were evident. Based on the current findings, the test tea oils were predominantly constituted of unsaturated fatty acids, oleic acid being the major unsaturated fatty acid, other fatty acids being present in different but smaller proportions.展开更多
Catechins (flavan-3-ols) are polyphenolic plant secondary metabolites that have been strongly associated with a wide variety of beneficial health effects in vitro, in vivo and clinically. This study reports findings o...Catechins (flavan-3-ols) are polyphenolic plant secondary metabolites that have been strongly associated with a wide variety of beneficial health effects in vitro, in vivo and clinically. This study reports findings on the content of catechins in tea seed oil (TSO) extracted by Soxhlet extraction from seeds of different clones of Kenyan tea. Extraction of catechins from the crude oils was achieved by sequential liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) using methanol and quantified by reverse phase High Performance Liquid Chromatography (RP-HPLC). Results obtained revealed that all the crude test oils contained catechins, with oils extracted from clones TRFK K-Purple and GW-Ejulu having the highest total catechin content of 9.8 ± 0.25 and 9.0 ± 0.83 (×10-3% flavonoids) respectively. Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) were evident in the total catechin contents of crude oils extracted from tea seeds with those extracted from corn, sunflower and soybean seeds. Moreover, clonal variations were evident, as the total catechin contents of oils extracted from clones TRFK K-Purple and GW-Ejulu were statistically different (p < 0.05) from those extracted from clones TRFK 301/3, TRFK 301/4, TRFK 301/5, TRFK 306, TRFK 91/1 and TRFCA SFS 150. Thus, the current findings strongly suggest that oils from seeds of Kenyan tea cultivars can be a potential source of potent natural antioxidants.展开更多
文摘Tea seeds resulting from the cultivation of tea in many parts of the world, often regarded as waste, have been found to contain oil of exceptional quality that can be harnessed for use as an oleo-chemical or chemical intermediate. A comparative study was carried out to examine the free fatty acid profiles of crude oils chemically extracted by Soxhlet extraction from tea seeds collected from different cultivars of Kenyan tea. All the tea seeds of the studied tea cultivars yielded oil, though to different extents (p > 0.05) after the 8-hour extraction. The oils were golden yellow in color. The contents of oleic, linoleic and stearic acids in all the crude test oils have no significant difference (p > 0.05) from each other. However, statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) in the linolenic and palmitic acids contents were evident. Based on the current findings, the test tea oils were predominantly constituted of unsaturated fatty acids, oleic acid being the major unsaturated fatty acid, other fatty acids being present in different but smaller proportions.
文摘Catechins (flavan-3-ols) are polyphenolic plant secondary metabolites that have been strongly associated with a wide variety of beneficial health effects in vitro, in vivo and clinically. This study reports findings on the content of catechins in tea seed oil (TSO) extracted by Soxhlet extraction from seeds of different clones of Kenyan tea. Extraction of catechins from the crude oils was achieved by sequential liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) using methanol and quantified by reverse phase High Performance Liquid Chromatography (RP-HPLC). Results obtained revealed that all the crude test oils contained catechins, with oils extracted from clones TRFK K-Purple and GW-Ejulu having the highest total catechin content of 9.8 ± 0.25 and 9.0 ± 0.83 (×10-3% flavonoids) respectively. Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) were evident in the total catechin contents of crude oils extracted from tea seeds with those extracted from corn, sunflower and soybean seeds. Moreover, clonal variations were evident, as the total catechin contents of oils extracted from clones TRFK K-Purple and GW-Ejulu were statistically different (p < 0.05) from those extracted from clones TRFK 301/3, TRFK 301/4, TRFK 301/5, TRFK 306, TRFK 91/1 and TRFCA SFS 150. Thus, the current findings strongly suggest that oils from seeds of Kenyan tea cultivars can be a potential source of potent natural antioxidants.
