Enzyme-assisted aqueous extraction of Njangsa (Ricinidendron heudelotti) seed oil

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Solvent extraction methods are widely used industrially to obtain oil from plant seeds, mostly due to their high efficiencies (90-98% w/w yield). However, consideration is being given to solvent-free extraction methods due to the growing concern that residual solvent in oil could pose significant health and environmental risks. As such, enzymatic extraction methods are receiving considerable interest in the oil industry due to their high specificity. Certain enzymes such as: hemicellulase, protease, pectinase and amylase are known to hydrolyze and degrade the cell wall of oilseeds, which significantly increases oil yield and quality upon extraction. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore the effects of these four different enzymes on Njangsa (Ricinodendron heudeulotti) seed. A control without any enzyme was run in tadem. These treatments were compared to solvent-extraction using hexane. The percent yield of the enzyme-assisted extraction (28.37 - 36.0%) were significantly (p < 0.05) higher than that of the control (19.09%) but, lower than the hexane extraction (46.40%). Quality indices of Njangsa seed oil (NSO) such as: acid, peroxide, saponification, thiobarbituric acid, para-anisidine and free fatty acid values of the enzyme-assisted extraction samples were found to be significantly (p < 0.05) lower than the solvent extraction samples. Predominant fatty acids of NSO were alpha-eleostearic acid (α- ESA), linoleic, stearic, and oleic. NSO had a high polyunsaturated fatty acid content. The use of enzymes in Njangsa seed extraction were able to improve the quality parameters of Njangsa oil.

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