Seeds are major sources of nutrients and bioactive compounds for human beings. In this work, the chemical composition and physicochemical properties of 155 Indian seeds (belonging to 49 families) are reported. Moisture and ash were measured with reference protocols from AOAC; total polyphenols and flavonoids were measured with spectrophotometric methods after extraction with organic solvents, and mineral elements were determined by X-ray fluorescence spectrophotometry. Total phenolic compounds, flavonoids and mineral contents (Al, Ba, Ca, Cl, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, P, Rb, S, Sr, Ti, V and Zn) were found to vary in the ranges 182–5000, 110–4465 and 687–7904 mg/100 g (DW), respectively. Noticeably, polyphenol contents higher than 2750 mg/100 g were observed in 18 seeds. In addition, mineral contents >5000 mg/100 g were detected in the seeds from Cuminum cyminum, Foeniculum vulgare, Commiphora wightii, Parkia javanica, Putranjiva roxburghii, Santalum album and Strychnos potatorum. Botanical and taxonomical variations in the proximate characteristics of the examined seeds are also discussed.

There are a plethora of plant species in India, which have been widely used in vegetable dishes, soups, desserts and herbal medicine. In addition to these traditional uses, today there is the extra possibility of also being able to use these plants in the nutritional supplements industry due to their favorable antioxidant and mineral composition. In this sense, thirteen vegetable species—Chanania lanzan, Ziziphus mauritiana, Nilumbo nucifera, Terminalia catappa, Terminalia arjuna, Terminalia bellirica, Terminalia chebula, Lagenaria siceraria, Luffa aegyptiaca, Praecitrullus fistulosus, Benincasa hispida, Citrullus lanatus var. lanatus and Cucurbita maxima—have been analyzed. In this paper we discuss the distribution of polyphenols and minerals (Na, K, Mg, Ca, Al, P, S, Cr, Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Mo, As and Pb) in different seed parts (the rhizome, pericarp, carpel, seed coat and kernel) of the above species and their possible use in the nutritional supplements industry. The concentrations of total polyphenols, flavonoids and minerals ranged from 407 to 3144 mg rutin hydrate/100 g, 24 to 3070 mg quercetin/100 g and 1433 to 7928 mg/100 g, respectively. K, Ca, P and S were abundant in these herbal fruits. In two species of herbal fruits, Terminalia arjuna and Terminalia chebula, only part of the seed structure was suitable for use in nutritional supplements.

Bioactive lipophilic compounds were investigated in 14 leguminous tree species of timber, agroforestry, medicinal or ornamental use but little industrial significance to elucidate their potential in food additive and supplement production. The tree species investigated were: Acacia auriculiformis, Acacia concinna, Albizia lebbeck, Albizia odoratissima, Bauhinia racemosa, Cassia fistula, Dalbergia latifolia, Delonix regia, Entada phaseoloides, Hardwickia binata, Peltophorum pterocarpum, Senegalia catechu, Sesbania sesban and Vachellia nilotica. The hexane-extracted oils of ripe seeds were chromatographically analysed for their fatty acid composition (GC-MS), tocochromanol (RP-HPLC/FLD), squalene and sterol (GC-FID) content. A spectrophotometrical method was used to determine total carotenoid content. The results showed generally low oil yield (1.75–17.53%); the highest was from H. binata. Linoleic acid constituted the largest proportion in all samples (40.78 to 62.28% of total fatty acids), followed by oleic (14.57–34.30%) and palmitic (5.14–23.04%) acid. The total tocochromanol content ranged from 100.3 to 367.6 mg 100 g⁻¹ oil. D. regia was the richest and the only to contain significant amount of tocotrienols while other oils contained almost exclusively tocopherols, dominated by either α-tocopherol or γ-tocopherol. The total carotenoid content was highest in A. auriculiformis (23.77 mg 100 g⁻¹), S. sesban (23.57 mg 100 g⁻¹) and A. odoratissima (20.37 mg 100 g⁻¹), and ranged from 0.7 to 23.7 mg 100 g⁻¹ oil. The total sterol content ranged from 240.84 to 2543 mg 100 g⁻¹; A. concinna seed oil was the richest by a wide margin; however, its oil yield was very low (1.75%). Either β-sitosterol or Δ5-stigmasterol dominated the sterol fraction. Only C. fistula oil contained a significant amount of squalene (303.1 mg 100 g⁻¹) but was limited by the low oil yield as an industrial source of squalene. In conclusion, A. auriculiformis seeds may hold potential for the production of carotenoid-rich oil, and H. binata seed oil has relatively high yield and tocopherol content, marking it as a potential source of these compounds.