Fatty Oil and Fatty Acid Composition ofAnnona squamosaLinn. Seed Kernels

The yield and fatty oil components of the seed kernels of Annona squamosa Linn. (Family: Annonaceae) were determined by a solvent extraction method and gas chromatography--mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The seed kernels were found to contain about 22.2% of crude fatty oil on a dry weight basis. The crude fatty oil was converted into methyl esters and analyzed by GC/MS. Eleven compounds, constituting 99.8% of the oil, were identified and the main compounds were oleic acid (47.4%), linoleic acid (22.9%), stearic acid (13.6%), and palmitic acid (12.1%). Oleic acid and linoleic acid together constitute 70.3% of the unsaturated fatty acids (UFAs) followed by the saturated fatty acids (25.7%), mainly palmitic acid and stearic acid. Heneicosanoic acid (2.3%), 11-eicosanoic acid (0.2%), 17-methyloctadecanoic acid (0.1%), and dihydrostereculic acid (0.1%) have not been reported earlier from the oil of A. squamosa but were found in this study.