Fatty‐Acid Composition of Seeds and Chemotaxonomic Evaluation of Sixteen Sapindaceae Species

Abstract

Circumscriptions for the Sapindaceae family and its infrafamilial relationships have been widely discussed. Certain groups are highly morphologically similar; thus, it is difficult to identify certain taxa. DNA Analyses have also indicated complex phylogenetic relationships, and it is difficult to relate such analyses to morphological data. Given the above concerns, this study aimed to investigate the fatty-acid profiles of the seed oils of 16 Sapindaceae species belonging to five tribes and to evaluate their potential chemotaxonomic significance. In total, eleven fatty acids were identified, and eicosenoic acid predominated in nine species. Multivariate analyses (principal component and cluster analyses) of the fatty-acid profiles of the seed oils allowed to separate them in two major clusters. The first cluster, characterized by oils with high eicosenoic acid levels, included all species belonging to the Paullinieae tribe (Cardiospermum, Paullinia, and Serjania species). In the second main cluster, the chemical similarity of the oils was lower, and the species belonged to different tribes. Nevertheless, the tree investigated Allophylus species (Thouinieae tribe) constituted a separate subcluster. Thus, the results showed that the fatty-acid composition of the seed oils of Sapindaceae species provide chemotaxonomic support for the separation of the Paullinieae tribe from the other tribes studied.

Composition of fatty acids, tocopherols, tocotrienols and β-carotene content in oils of seeds of Brazilian Sapindaceae and Meliaceae species

“…This fatty acid profile has been previously observed in this species (Spitzer 1996) and in others of the genera Paullinia, Cadiospermum and Urvillea (Spitzer 1996). High contents of isomers of eicosenoic acid have been identified in seed oils of Cardiospermum, Serjania and Paullinia species (Azam et al 2005;Coutinho et al 2015).…”

“…The oil content of G. guidonea was analyzed for the first time and was similar to that of Mexican species of this genus, such as G. chichon (15.9%) and G. excelsa (14.5%) (Sotelo et al 1990). The oil content of Sapindaceae species is similar to that found in other representatives of this family (Azam et al 2005;Coutinho et al 2015Coutinho et al , 2016. This confirms the plant as a good oil source for industrial purposes.…”

“…and Sapindus esculentus A. St.-Hil are widely appreciated as food and exert an antioxidant activity (Oliveira et al 2012). In our previous work, we studied some seeds of Brazilian species of the genera Allophylus and Paullinia focusing on their high oil content and fatty acid composition (Coutinho et al 2015).…”

Three Chemically Distinct Floral Ecotypes in Drakaea livida, an Orchid Pollinated by Sexual Deception of Thynnine Wasps

“…Chemical composition of floral volatiles has proved an informative trait in distinguishing morphologically cryptic taxa in a number of plant species [33][34][35][36][37][38]. For example, in the sexually deceptive genus Chiloglottis, co-occurring morphologically cryptic taxa can be differentiated based on a combination of one or two specific pollinator-attracting compounds [25].…”