Abstract

LOPEZ HERNANDEZ, Orestes Darío; MARQUEZ CONDE, Tania; SALOMON IZQUIERDO, Suslebys  and  GONZALEZ SANABIA, María Lidia. Lipid extraction from seeds of Cucurbita pepo L. (pumpkin). Rev Cubana Plant Med [online]. 2009, vol.14, n.2. ISSN 1028-4796.

INTRODUCTION: Cucurbita pepo L., commonly known as pumpkin, has been used as antihelminthic and diuretic compound in the traditional herbal medicinal. Due to high oil percentage in its seeds, rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, phytosterols, tocopherols and carotenoids, this oil has been used in the treatment of diseases involving inflammatory processes such as benign prostatic hyperplasia. OBJECTIVES: to study different solvents for lipid extraction from C. pepo seeds. METHODS: several organic solvents (petroleum ether, ethanol and hexane) were evaluated for lipid extraction from C. pepo seeds. RESULTS: the contents of lipids extracted with ethanol was similar to that extracted with hexane; however, the same amount of linoleic acid was extracted using ethanol and petroleum ether but the amount was much lower when using hexane. Shaking and length of extraction did not significantly affect lipid extraction. CONCLUSIONS:: Ethanol showed better results than petroleum ether and hexane because of its lower exposure risk and more economically feasible use.

Keywords : Cucurbita pepo L; seeds; lipids; extraction.

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