Oilseed content from O. ficus-indica (prickly pears) ranges from 5.0% to 14.4% according to the Turkish varieties Ortaoren or Eskioba Matth¨aus. The seeds of Opuntia dillenii were used as high-quality edible oil with health benefits as they contains high amounts of unsaturated fatty acids. The main fatty acids of the 17 cactus oil samples from Morocco are palmitic acid and linoleic acid. 10 Cactus Pear seedoil contains saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, with higher linoleic acid content, while myristic, palmitoleic, hexa-decadienoic, and margaric are present in minimal amounts. Opuntia dillenii seed-oil also includes phenolic acids, flavonoids, and tannins that are considered as antioxidants for the pharmaceutical industry. 11 The fatty acid composition of this oil is an essential indicator for its added nutritional value. 12 Supplementation of bakery products like cake, that present a rich source of energy and protein, with butter of Cactus seed-oil will further help in improving its nutritional value and chemical qualities. Development of value added products from diverse raw ingredients is receiving the prime focus of the food processing industry and by researchers. 13,14

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The present study aims to identify and characterize the chemical compounds present in the extracts of cactus pear Opuntia dillenii (OD) fruit which grow in southern Iraq and offer different health benefits. The physicochemical properties of the fruit juices (pulp and peels) were investigated. Fruit pulp and peel extracts carried the symbols: hexane pulp extract (HPuE), hexane peel extract (HPeE), ethanolic pulp extract (EPuE), and ethanolic peels extract (EPeE). The activel compound screened by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). HPuE and HPeE contained 40 bioactive compounds and 60 bioactive compounds were detected in EPuE and EPeE. The scavenging activity of DPPH free radicals records a high level of inhibition ranging from 34.8 to 90.3% for EPeE and from 32.9 to 89.9% for EPuE, while hexane extracts scavenging activities (HPeE and HPuE) were 24.9-78.9% and 20.7-73.3% respectively at concentrations of 20 – 80 µg.ml-1 this activity has received considerable attention because of their physiological functions