Fatty acids composition of the oil, and quantification of 5-HTP, chlorophylls (a & b) and total carotenoids, of Griffonia simplicifolia Seeds

Abstract

Griffonia simplicifolia seeds are highly sought after in African herbal medicine and nutraceutical industries, thanks to their richness in 5-HTP. The seeds also contain other natural interesting substances such as fatty acids, but totally ignored by local populations. This study proposes to add value to the seeds exported by some African countries such as Ghana to US and EU. GC-MS analysis shows that its oil contains fatty acids such as: linoleic acid (73.19%); stearic acid (14.69%); palmitic acid (11.12%) and the remainder (1.00%). HPLC analysis indicates that the seeds contain 8.11±0.25% of 5-HTP, while UV-Visible spectrophotometry analysis reveals that the seeds contain 253.154±1.95 μg/g of chlorophyll A, 436.390±2.44 μg/g of chlorophyll B and 64.870±2.37 μg/g of total carotenoids. In short, the composition of Griffonia simplicifolia seeds in fatty acids, 5-HTP and phytopigments confers biological properties testifying its multiple therapeutic and nutritional virtues long emphasized by local populations of Togo.