Sapucaia nut (Lecythis pisonis Cambess) and its by-products: A promising and underutilized source of bioactive compounds. Part I: Nutritional composition and lipid profile

Abstract

The nutritional composition of the sapucaia nut, cake and shell, the nut and cake minerals content and the lipid profile of the nut oil (fatty acids, tocopherols, phytosterols and triacylglycerols) were determined. The nuts and cake exhibited a high content of lipid (47.9 to 60.8 mg 100 g^-1), protein (15.8 to 19.5 mg 100 g^-1), dietary fiber (16.5 to 22.6 mg 100 g^-1) and provided an excellent source of selenium (26.4 to 46.94 μg g^-1). The oil contained a high amount of unsaturated fatty acids (39.7 to 45.4% of oleic and 32.2 to 46.6% of linoleic acids) and presented a high Oxidative Stability Index (8.57-12.95 h) indicating the presence of antioxidant compounds in the oil. The major triacylglycerols in the sapucaia oil were LLO, PLO, LOO, POO, OOO, PLL and LLL. The main bioactive lipids identified in the oil were γ-tocopherol (19.2 to 28.5 mg 100 g^-1) and β-sitosterol (92.8 to 194 mg 100 g^-1). The results showed that the sapucaia nut and its by-products are a promising natural source of bioactive and nutritional compounds and when present in the diet can contribute to the maintenance of human health. In addition, the nut and by-product represents a promising raw material for the food industry.

Keywords: Fatty acids; Minerals; Phytosterols; Selenium; Tocopherols; Triacylglycerol.