Fatty acids composition of Mirabilis jalapa L.

Abstract

Introduction. Mirabilis jalapa L. is a popular ornamental plant of the Nyctaginaceae family, which is widely cultivated in many countries around the world. Mirabilis jalapa L. has long been used in traditional medicine around the world as an anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antifungal, antispasmodic, analgesic, diuretic, laxative and reparative agent. Data on the fatty acids of Mirabilis jalapa L. are rather limited in the literature, so it was important to study them. Material & methods.
The objects of the study were the leaves, stems, fruits and roots of Mirabilis jalapa L., harvested in the Kharkiv region during 2019-2020. Studies of the composition of fatty acids were performed by gas chromatography. Results & discussion. In the lipophilic fraction of Mirabilis jalapa L. leaves 14 fatty acids, stems, fruits and roots – 12 fatty acids each were identified. Unsaturated fatty acids predominated in all subjects. Linolenic acid was dominant in the leaves of Mirabilis jalapa L., in the lipophilic fraction of which its content was 62.33 %. Roots and stems contained a significant amount of linoleic acid, the content of which was 45.05 % and 35.60 %, respectively. Mirabilis jalapa L. fruits accumulated a large amount (53.18 %) of oleic acid.
Lauric and arachic acids were identified only in Mirabilis jalapa L. leaves, but their content was negligible. Conclusion. The fatty acid composition of Mirabilis jalapa L. leaves, stems, fruits and roots harvested in Ukraine was studied for the first time by gas chromatography. According to the results of the study, it was found that all objects accumulated mostly unsaturated fatty acids, the content of which ranged from 64.50 % to 81.82 %. Linolenic acid was dominant in the leaf (62.33 %), oleic acid (53.18 %) in fruits, and linoleic acid in stems and roots (35.60 % and 45.05 %, respectively). In all investigated types of raw materials among saturated fatty acids in the greatest quantity palmitic acid is defined. The obtained results can be used to predict the anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and antioxidant properties of herbal medicines based on the raw material of Mirabilis jalapa L.

DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.5761145