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Abstract
Safflower has a long history of cultivation. Some would classify it as the world's oldest crop. Because safflower was introduced to many lands, it is known by a number of different names, for example, false saffron, benihana, safflor, thistle saffron, and so on. Safflower is a plant of desert origin. Flowering takes place during the warmest part of the growing season. Most farming areas of the world receive some summer rains. If rains occur, then the safflower has a chance of surviving. However, the chances also increase for the plant to be attacked by various molds. The history and botanical description of safflower are detailed in this chapter. Safflower seed consists of a tough fibrous hull that protects the kernel. Attempts have been made to produce commercial hybrids of safflower seed by exploiting heterosis to increase seed or oil content. Safflower oil is pale yellow to golden and exhibits the highest level of linoleic fatty acid of any commercial oil. This high level has made safflower oil attractive to consumers. Processing of the safflower to produce the oil is done in various stages: extraction, refining, bleaching, and deodorizing. Marketing of safflower and the quality assessment of the seed and oil are discussed. Unique uses for safflower seeds include bird feed, ornamental plantings, food coloring, dyes, in medicinal products, and in cosmetics.
Safflower seed is an important alternative oil crop because of its high oil content (27%–32%), which is rich in linoleic acid (55%–70%). Cold pressed safflower oil possesses high nutritional and pharmaceutical values due to its noticeable amounts of bioactive compounds and essential fatty acids. The oil is known as a valuable source of α-tocopherol, which shows the highest vitamin E activity, and it therefore has many health benefits such as prevention and treatment of hyperlipemia, arteriosclerosis, and coronary heart disease. Safflower seed is suitable for growing all over the world, with high soil and climate adaptation. The most common volatile compounds found in cold pressed safflower oil are paeonol, α-asarone, β-asarone, 1-methyl-4-(2-propenyl)-benzene, diethenyl-benzene, acetoin, methyl benzene, hexanal, p-xylene, heptanal, and 2-octenal. This chapter reviews the extraction techniques of safflower seed oil, bioactive compounds in cold pressed safflower oil and their health effects, aroma compounds found in cold pressed safflower oil, application areas, adulteration, and some process contaminants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and 3-monochloropropanediol (3-MCPD) esters.
Abstract Plant oils are a good source of compounds that decrease the risk of some diseases. Growing consumer awareness has led to more interest in natural cold-pressed plant oils, which are often considered functional foods. Many unconventional edible plant oils are available on the market, but their quality and composition are often unknown. The aim of this study was to compare the nutritional value and quality of sixteen unconventional cold-pressed edible oils. The acid value (AV), peroxide value (PV), oxidative stability, fatty acid composition, phytosterol content, and tocochromanol content were measured for both fresh and stored oils. The nutritional quality indexes were also calculated. Cluster analysis of all factors showed that the oils fell into two groups: the first contained argan oil, pine oil, apricot kernel oil, avocado fruit oil, and macadamia nut oil; these had high levels of saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids and low amounts of phytosterols and tocochromanols. The second group included oil from dill seeds, milk thistle seeds, parsley seeds, watermelon seeds, safflower, poppy seeds, black cumin seeds, hemp, blackcurrant seeds, borage, and wheat germ. The highest tocochromanol and phytosterol content were
Oil content analysis in oilseed crops requires methods
that are non-destructive, accurate, fast, eco-friendly
(without the use of solvent), inexpensive in terms of
consumables, and easy to use. Pulsed low-resolution
nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) satisfies all these
conditions. The objective of the present study was to
develop an oil measurement method for seeds using
NMR spectrometry. A bench-top pulsed NMR analyser
was calibrated with respect to temperature. Six
genotypes each of sunflower, safflower and castor
were used for the analysis. Changes in sample conditioning
temperature can lead to significant changes in
the calibration graph. Based on the statistical parameters
(correlation coefficient, variance and standard
deviation) obtained, the best calibration was found for
sunflower and safflower at 40C and castor at 44C
among the temperature ranges tested.
The effects of different levels of safflower meal (a residue of the plant oil extraction process) in diets of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) on growth performance, nutrient digestibility and body composition were investigated. Four different diets containing 0% (Control group), 10% (Diet 1), 15% (Diet 2) and 20% (Diet 3) safflower meal were formulated for the fish with a mean weight of 132.70 ± 0.75 g fed for 70 days. At the end of the experiment, there were no significant differences among dietary treatments for weight gain, specific growth rate and feed conversion ratio (P > 0.05). There were also no differences in the digestibility of crude protein and crude lipid between groups (P > 0.05). Supplementation of safflower meal in the diets also had no adverse effects on body composition. The results indicate that safflower meal is a promising feed ingredient and can be used up to a concentration of 20% in the rainbow trout diet with no adverse effects on growth performance, nutrient digestibility or body composition.
THE production of safflower in this country has increased enormously in the last few years. The oil may be removed from the safflower seed commercially and the residue which is left is available for animal and poultry feeding. The undecorticated safflower cake contains 20.2 percent protein and 33.0 percent fiber (Woodman, 1945) and is of little interest to the poultry industry because of its high fiber content. However, by a decortication process it is possible to produce a meal with much higher protein and lower fiber content which compares favorably in gross analysis to other vegetable oil seed products commonly used in poultry rations.
Previous work (Kratzer and Williams, 1947) showed that slight deficiencies of arginine, lysine, methionine, and either or both glycine and cystine were produced when safflower protein was fed as the only protein source in a chick ration. The safflower meals used in this work were samples . . .
The use of laboratory- and commercially-prepared safflower meal for the production of protein isolates is described. The isolates were obtained by micellisation and isoelectric precipitation techniques, the latter being the most efficient procedure. Previous treatments received by the meal, for example heating, influenced the protein recovery. In general, isolates produced by micellisation were more soluble than samples obtained by isoelectric precipitation. The colour of the protein isolates depended on the isolation technique and type of safflower meal utilised. All isolates had a similar amino acid composition and levels of in-vitro protein digestibility.
Safflower seed oil extraction with supercritical CO2 at series operational parameters of pressure, temperature, flow rate and particle size was investigated in a bench scale apparatus. The results show that the extraction yields plotted as a function of time are significantly affected by the extraction pressure, flow rate and particle size, but extraction yields plotted versus CO2 used are scarcely affected by flow rate. Extraction temperature has a slight effect on the extraction curves. In order to describe the extraction process, the Sovova’s extended Lack’s Model (SLM) was used and the experimental data were well fitted by it. The extraction was scaled up to pilot plant and the computed values of SLM are in good agreement with the pilot plant data. Additionally, the quality of safflower seed oil obtained by supercritical CO2 extraction is superior to that of oil obtained by traditional methods. It is noted that a new method of changing flow rate was proposed to improve the process efficiency and proved to be valuable by experiment.
Eight different vegetable oils obtained commercially were analyzed for volatiles by capillary gas chromatography (GC). Volatiles
generated in a GC static headspace sampler at 180 C were injected automatically onto a chemically bonded capillary column.
Only a small number of GC peaks of low intensity were observed in the fresh samples, which varied in peroxide values from
0.2 to 3. Several major peaks were evident in the oils aged eight and 16 days at 60 C with peroxide values ranging from 16
to 65. Thirty-four GC peaks were identified on the basis of relative retention time of reference compounds and on the basis
of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Volatile compounds identified were those expected from the autoxidation of
principal unsaturated fatty acid components of each vegetable oil tested. The relative concentrations of volatile components
increased with the level of oxidation as determined by peroxide value.
Studies on the mechanism of stereoselectivity of chromium tricarbonyl catalysts with model compounds provided the basis for
the preparation of simulated fats. These synthetic fats were prepared by taking advantage of the unique property of chromium
carbonyl complexes to catalyze hydrogenation of polyunsaturates tocis-monounsaturates. Oils simulating the composition of peanut oil were produced by hydrogenating soybean oil stereoselectively
to an IV of 94. Simulated olive oil was made the same way from either soybean or safflower oil hydrogenated to an IV of 82–84.
Stereoselective 1,4-reduction of eleostearate in tung oil produced oils that had a high proportion of linoleate and that simulated
safflower oil. The oleo-disaturated glyceride structure of cocoa butter was also simulated by selectively hydrogenating linoleate
in cottonseed oil stearines and in fractionated high-palmitate stearines. Dilatometric and chromatographic studies showed
that thecis-monoene-disaturated glyceride is the major component (60–70%) in the synthetic cocoa butter.
In this study, the methyl ester production and characterization from safflower oil (SO) was examined. The seed were collected from Yozgat-Turkey and SO was obtained from safflower seeds using screw press. SO was transesterified with methanol and NaOH to obtain safflower oil methyl ester (SOME). SO and SOME show high amounts of linoleic acid of 62.29 and 61.17%, respectively. This result in better low temperature properties of SOME like cloud point (CP) of -5 °C, pour point (PP) of -14 °C, freezing point (FP) of -16 °C and cold filter plugging point (CFPP) of -9 °C. Cold flow properties of SOME demonstrate its operational viability during the cold weather conditions and also it exhibited excellent transportation safety with flash point of 171 °C. It has been found that fuel properties of SOME indicate that SO can be considered as a future biodiesel source. Furthermore, viscosity, density, higher heating value (HHV), flash point, water content, pH, copper strip corrosion, CP, PP, FP and CFPP of SOME-SO, SOME-Euro Diesel(ED) and SO-ED blends have been investigated and discussed in the light of biodiesel standards. The effects of temperature and fraction on density and viscosity of blends were studied and constants of these correlations vary depending on the type of blend.
Safflower has been grown for centuries in the Nile Valley and in parts of Asia. It is a newly established U.S. crop and is expected to become a major one. In dry climates where adequate soil moisture is available it yields over a ton of seed per acre, rich in high quality oil and protein. Chick experiments indicate that the meal is relatively free of physiologically deleterious components and, properly supplemented, produces high growth rates. The relatively high content of sulfur amino acids and low content of lysine suggest combinations with soybean protein. Preliminary work has yielded low fiber, palatable foods. More research is needed to develop the potential of safflower as a source of human food.
Recent studies on the isolation of cathartic lignan glycoside1) from Carthamus tinctorius L. prompt us to report our results in a related area. Ethyl acetate extracts from oil-free saf flower meal (3 kg) were chromatographed on silica gel columns to give three new serotonin derivatives 1 (2.22 g), 2 (1.32 g) and 3 (0.55 g), all of which showed positive response for the both Folin-Ciocaltheu's and Ehrlich's reagents. © 1978, Japan Society for Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Agrochemistry. All rights reserved.
New three conjugated serotonins were isolated from safflower meal (carthamus tinctorius L.).On the basis of spectral properties and chemical evidence, their structures were determined as N-feruloylserotonin (4), N-(p-coumaroyl)serotonin (5) and N-(p-coumaroyl)serotonin mono-β-D-glucopyranoside (6). The known compounds, 2-hydroxyarctiin (2), matairesinol mono-β-D-glucoside (1) and acacetin (3) were also isolated and identified.
Structural identification of a steroid diglucoside from Carthamus tinctorius whose aglycone is 15α-20β-dihydroxy-Δ4-pregnen-3-one has been completed. We have analyzed the sugar moiety of the glycoside and found it to be cellobiose, β-linked to C-20 of the aglycone.
A previously unreported steroid glycoside has been isolated from safflower meal. Spectral analysis of the steroid by MS, NMR, UV and IR reveals it to be a new structure of the form 15α,20β-dihydroxy-Δ4-pregnen-3-one.
Summary A single gene,ol, was found in safflower selections from India. Plants of genotypesolol, OIol, andO1O1 yield seed that have iodine values about 75 to 90, 111 to 130, and 131 to 145, respectively.
Analyses of the oil of single seeds using gas chromatographic techniques have shown that the fatty acid content of each seed
is determined by the genotype of the seed, not the genotype of the plant carrying the seed.
Differences in iodine value are due primarily to variations in the level of linoleic and oleic acids.
It is believed that types with low iodine value had their origins in the Dacca district of East Pakistan.
Genetic male sterility was found in safltower ( Carthamus tinctorius L.) plants from USDA Plant Introduction (PI) 253914 from Afghanistan. The male‐sterile character was first observed in progeny of normal plants of PI 253914 that had been treated with colchicine. Male sterility was controlled by a single recessive nuclear gene, ms . Plants that were homozygousf or ms were completely male sterile and were not influenced by cytoplasmic factors. The ms gene did not adversely affect female fertility. Whole plant seed yield of open‐pollinated male‐sterile plants of PI 253914 did not significantly differ from that of adjacent male fertile plants. The number of seeds in open‐pollinated male‐sterile plants was reduced, but individual seeds were larger. Germplasm carrying the ms has been released as UC‐148 and UC‐149.
We found an achene (seed) characteristic, reduced‐hull, in progeny of a cross between normal‐hull safflower (Curthamus tinctorius L. var. ‘Ute’) and a purple‐striped line. The reduced‐hull character results from a reduction of the outer sclerenchyma layers of the pericarp. Experimental reduced‐hull lines possess 27 to 33% hull, 41 to 44% oil, and they significantly out‐yield ‘US‐10,’ a standard check variety.
Examination of sugars in safflower hull and kernel revealed sucrose and raffinose to be predominent, with smaller amounts
ofd-glucose andd-fructose. Galactinol (1-O-a-d-galactopyranosylmyoinositol) and other carbohydrate material which appear to contai uronic acids, fucose, glucose, fructose
and arabinose, were also present.
Summary A rapid method is described for treating nondegummed soybean oil with water and a mixture of cation and anion exchange resins
at elevated temperatures. In less than 30 min. 85% of phosphatide phosphorus is converted to a water-soluble, petroleum ether-insoluble
form. Very little free or combined fatty acids are associated with the phosphorus thus split off from the phosphatide, and
only a moderate increase in free fatty acid in the oil phase occurs. It is proposed that the phosphatides are largely converted
to diglycerides by the selective hydrolytic treatment.
This volume assembles and interprets the basic and applied aspects of the burgeoning literature on oil crops. This book presents the plant breeding principles and practices that have led to significant crop modifications desired by producers and the oil crops industry.
SAFFLOWER (Carthamus tinctorius) is an ancient crop of India and Egypt.
The valuable properties of its oil in the manufacture of paint have
recently attracted the attention of agronomists and oil chemists, and
commercial production of safflower in several countries has commenced.
Safflower meal is a valuable animal feed and shows promise of being useful as human food. Although rich in protein, the meal is dificient in the essential amino acid, lysine. In a survey of the world collection of safflower seeds, several foreign varieties were found to contain 15% more lysine, through two generations, than the average domestic commercial variety and 26% more lysine than the average foreign variety. In addition, plot tests on pure domestic varieties revealed that environmental effects on lysine content are highly significant.
The safflower plant is an annual of the composite family. Its seed produces a valuable edible oil with the highest available polyunsaturated-saturated ratio and linoleic acid content. Aside from its increasing importance in human nutrition, the oil is used in alkyd resins, paints, and enamels. Safflower meal is used as a protein feed supplement for cattle, sheep, and poultry. Honey is produced from the safflower blossom.Safflower oil is nonallergenic. Testing with the water-soluble protein fraction of the seed should be performed first by the scratch or puncture method.
Safflower meal defatted at the laboratory (SML) and safflower cake provided by an industrial plant (SMI) were used for protein isolation. Isolates were obtained by micellisation (MP) and isoelectric precipitation (IP) techniques. The functional properties studied with these isolates were water and fat absorption, foam expansion and stability, and emulsion activity and stability. Within the experimental conditions of this research, it was observed that the various treatments received previously by the safflower meal, for oil extraction, seemed to have comparatively minor effects on the functional performance of the protein isolates. Only in the case of SML, did the MP isolates have a higher water and fat absorption, and foam expansion than IP samples. For both SML and SMI, the emulsion stability of MP was higher than that of IP.
Safflower protein isolates (SPI) containing from 86.7–95.6% protein (N × 5.3) were prepared by extracting safflower meal at pH 8, 9 or 10 with NaOH and precipitating the protein with HCl at pH 5 (the iso-electric point) or 6. Within the various conditions used, N extraction was 64–77% with N recovered in the SPI ranging between 53 and 64%. Yield, as % weight or % N, increased with more alkaline extraction, whereas SPI with higher protein values resulted from lower extraction pH and precipitation at pH 6. Within any extraction pH, % N recovered was not significantly influenced by precipitation pH. Lysine was the first limiting amino acid in both safflower meal and SPI. True N digestibility of SPI was 96–97%, with that of the meal ranging from 78–85%. PER of safflower meal was not adversely affected by processing temperatures of up to 110°C, and, when combined with soy flour (1:1, w/w), PER was equivalent to that of soy protein alone. PER of SPI (1.05–1.28) was increased to 2.1–2.2 by supplementation with L-lysine or when combined with a digestible protein with a complementary amino acid composition, such as rice bran protein concentrate.
The objective of the present research was to develop an effective and practical method for hybrid seed production in safflower, by inducing male sterility with gibberellic acid (GA3). Seeds of the spiny line ‘5-154’ and the non-spiny variety ‘Dincer 5-118’ were sown in alternate rows and the plants of the non-spiny female variety were exposed to various concentrations of GA3 for male sterility induction. Three successive sprays (75, 82 and 89 days after sowing) of 100 p.p.m. of GA3 to safflower buds of <0.5 cm diameter at a pre-meiotic interphase stage resulted in reduced pollen viability from 81.6-6.7% compared with the control. An average hybrid seed percentage of 80.7% (87.5% in the secondary heads), identified by the use of the spiny-capitulum marker variety ‘5-154′, was obtained. The GA3 treatments did not significantly affect the production of viable achenes. The results showed that GA3 could be successfully used as a chemical hybridizing agent in hybrid safflower production.
Functional properties of safflower protein isolates (SPI), including nitrogen solubility, foaming capacity and stability, emulsification activity and stability, water and fat binding capacities, and bread baking properties were investigated. Extraction, precipitation, neutralization and drying methods influenced functionality. SPI precipitated at pH 6 was more soluble at acidic pH values and performed more favorably in wheat flour breads than did SPI precipitated at pH 5. The incorporation of 5 and 10% SPI into breads resulted in increases of ≃ 25 and 50% in protein, respectively.
The common unsaturated fatty acids present in many vegetable oils (oleic, linoleic and linolenic acids) can be quantitated by 1H-nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-NMR). A key feature is that the signals of the terminal methyl group of linolenic acid are shifted downfield from the corresponding signals in the other fatty acids, permitting their separate integration and quantitation of linolenic acid. Then, using the integration values of the signals of the allylic and bis-allylic protons, oleic and linoleic acids can be quantitated. The procedure was verified for mixtures of triacylglycerols (vegetable oils) and methyl esters of oleic, linoleic and linolenic acids as well as palmitic and stearic acids. Generally, the NMR (400 MHz) results were in good agreement with gas chromatographic (GC) analyses. As the present 1H-NMR-based procedure can be applied to neat vegetable oils, the preparation of derivatives for GC would be unnecessary. The present method is extended to quantitating saturated (palmitic and stearic) acids, although in this case the results deviate more strongly from actual values and GC analyses. Alternatives to the iodine value (allylic position equivalents and bis-allylic position equivalents) can be derived directly from the integration values of the allylic and bis-allylic protons.
A liquid partition chromatographic method was developed to isolated and determine hydroperoxides in autoxidized fatty acids or their methyl esters. By the use of benzene containing 2 to 4% methanol as the mobile solvent, the hydroperoxides were separated from unoxidized fatty acids or methyl esters and from secondary and polymeric decomposition products. In the analyses of oxidized fatty acids, diethyl ether was necessary to elute the secondary decomposition products.
Saponification of autoxidized fatty esters destroyed the peroxides as determined iodometrically, but the resulting acids contained a fraction which was eluted in the same position as hydroperoxide acids. Evidence showed that this fraction is a monomeric hydroxy fatty acid containing conjugated cis-traux and trans-trans unsaturation.
Fatty ester hydroperoxides were isolated chromatographically in yields and purity comparable to those reported in the literature by countercurrent distribution. The concentrations of methyl linoleate hydroperoxide determined chromatographically were smaller than indicated by the peroxide value and diene conjugation of the autoxidized methyl linoleate.
A gas chromatographic reactor can be used to investigate the prooxidant activities of different light sources on polyunsaturated
lipids, including linoleic acid and safflower oil. The rate of oxidation was followed from the early stages of oxygen uptake,
using a thermal conductivity detector (TCD). The experiments were made at low O2 concentrations and at a broad range of temperatures. To monitor the effect of light on the oxidation of linoleic acid, chlorophyll
and methylene blue were used as sensitizers, and β-carotene was used as a reported inhibitor of oxidation. The simultaneous
measurements of oxygen uptake and volatiles formation were also monitored using a TCD and flame ionization detector (FID).
The method is presently being developed as a technique to predict the stability of fatty foods packaged in transparent or
translucent materials.
Oxidation prior to deodorization was shown to be detrimental to the flavor and oxidative stability of soybean oil. The increase in the nonvolatile carbonyl content of freshly deodorized oils was proportional to the peroxide value of the oils before deodorization. Rate of loss of flavor and oxidative stability of the oil were related to the extent of carbonyl development. All oils, whether or not they had been submitted to any known oxidation, contained some nonvolatile carbonyls. The loss in stability was not due to a loss of the antioxidant tocopherol.
Oxidized soybean oil methyl esters were shown to develop nonvolatile carbonyl compounds upon heating at deodorization temperatures. The addition of isolated methyl ester peroxide decomposition products to deodorized soybean oil reduced its flavor and oxidative stability in proportion to the amount added. The results obtained were parallel and similar to those obtained by oxidizing soybean oil prior to deodorization.
Flavor deterioration and undesirable flavors were typical of aging soybean oil whether or not the oils were oxidized before deodorization or whether an equivalent amount of nonvolatile thermal decomposition products was added to the oil. These oxidatively derived, nonvolatile carbonyl materials are believed to enter into the sequence of reactions that contribute to flavor instability and quality deterioration of soybean oil. The structure of these materials is not know.
This work indicates the importance of minimizing autoxidation in soybean oil particularly before deodorization to insure good oxidative and flavor stability.
Safflower oil was incorporated into a model emulsion system containing emulsifier, carbohydrates, antioxidants, and protein.
Emulsions were spray dried and the dry powders were stored at 60 C. Their oxidation rates were measured by headspace gas analysis
(Oxygen absorption and carbon dioxide generation); peroxide and carbonyl values also were run. Although these objective tests
all gave good correlation with average flavor scores, results show that oxygen absorption was superior to others as an indicator
of flavor deterioration. Stepwise, multiple linear regression analysis showed that oxygen absorption and carbonyl value gave
an equation which can predict flavor scores with a high degree of accuracy.
Studies on crude safflower oils have established that three phosphatides extracted with the oil from the kernel of the seed
are responsible for color formation. The phosphatides have been isolated and identified as phosphatidylethanolamine (PE),
phosphatidylmyoinositol (PI) and phosphatidylcholine (PC). Phosphatidylethanolamine was the most potent contributor to color
formation, followed by phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylcholine. The color-forming compounds were separated from the crude
oil by precipitation with water and obtained in pure form by column chromatography on DEAE cellulose. The components were
identified by comparison of Rf values of intact and deacylated phosphatides with those of known reference compounds, by determination of molar ratios of
ester, glycerol, choline, inositol, nitrogen and phosphorus, and by qualitative and quantitative gas chromatographic analysis
of the fatty acid residues.
Chromium carbonyl complex catalysts were used to selectively hydrogenate polyunsaturates in vegetable oils into products retaining
90% to 95%cis configuration and their liquid properties. The product from soybean oil contained 42–69% monoene, 10–40% diene and 0–4% triene.
The product from safflower oil contained 73–82% monoene and 8–17% diene. About 45–55% of the double bonds in monoenes from
hydrogenated soybean oil remained in the C9 position, and the rest was distributed between C10, C11, and C12. Preliminary oxidative and flavor stability evaluations showed that these hydrogenated soybean oils compared favorably with
a commercial sample of hydrogenated-winterized soybean oil. Liquid fatty acids prepared by saponification of hydrogenated
soybean and safflower oils (IV 90–100) had analyses about the same as those of commercial oleic acid.
Malonaldehyde acetals were prepared in more than a 70% yield by ozonolysis of the methyl esters of linseed oil, safflower
oil and linoleic acid, and by ozonolysis of linseed oil alone. Malonaldehyde tetramethyl acetal could not be separated readily
from caproaldehyde dimethyl acetal by fractional distillation. However, conversion of the methyl acetals to propylene glycol
acetals resulted in sufficient spread in boiling points for their effective separation by distillation.
Detailed information on the various aspects of saffron is provided. Physiological requirements of the plant are stressed.
It is hoped that this short report will lead to extension of saffron production in Jammu and Kashmir and in the adjoining
areas of the neighboring states of India.
A liquid-partition chromatographic method was developed to determine dimers in fats. Silicie acid treated with 20% methanol in benzene served as the immobile phase. A mixture of 2% methanol in benzene was the mobile solvent. Chromatographic separation of free fatty acids from oxidized-deodorized oils gave three well-isolated fractions composed of unoxidized acids, dimeric or polymeric fatty acids, and polar fraction (ethyl ether eluate). Recovery of acidic materials from the column was essentially quantitative (96–100%), reproducibility was good, and the standard error of regression was ±0.26.
A linear relationship exists between the dimer content of deodorized soybean oil and the peroxide value of the oil before deodorization. An increase of 1% in dimer concentration corresponds to an increase in peroxide value of approximately 40. Dimer content of different vegetable oils varied from 1 to 3%.
The chromatographic method can be used to estimate the degree of oxidation that an oil has received before deodorization and to follow various phases of fat oxidation, polymerization, and processing.
Studies on phosphatides from several safflower varieties show the following five major results. The total phosphatide contents
of the various safflower seeds are quite similar (0.48% for a commercial and 0.58% for a brown-striped variety). The same
three major and one minor phosphatides were present in all varieties: phosphatidyl choline (PC), phosphatidyl ethanolamine
(PE), phosphatidyl inositol (PI) and phosphatidyl serine (PS). The amounts of these lipids present in the crude phosphatide
mixture were quite similar in all varieties tested (}36% for PC, }15% for PE, }23% for PI, and less than 2% for PS). The fatty
acid composition of the phosphatides of UC-1 high oleic safflower is very different from that of the other varieties, but
it reflects the composition of the corresponding oil triglycerides as far as the major acid is concerned. All other safflower
seed phosphatides investigated have linoleic acid as the major fatty acid constituent. A simple and very sensitive color test
has been found which can differentiate phosphatides of the high linoleic from the high oleic type.