Melatonin‐rich, erucic acid‐lean nutraceutical supplements by microwave‐assisted solvent extraction of brown and yellow mustard seeds

Abstract

The seeds of brown mustard-Brassica juncea (BJ) and yellow mustard-Brassica campestris (BC) are principally valued as sources of edible oil and also as condiments. Additionally, the seeds are an important source of antioxidant melatonin (MT) which reportedly has significant anti-cancer, hypoglycaemic (Paul et al., 2021), and hypocholesterolemic properties (Chakraborty & Bhattacharjee, 2017; Li et al., 2017). However, consumption of whole seeds of BJ and BC for the realization of the benefits of the aforementioned biotherapeutic molecule is limited by their high Scoville heat units (SHU) which render strong pungency even to cooked mustard seeds. Additionally, these seeds possess erucic acid as the predominant fatty acid (Chakraborty & Bhattacharjee, 2020) which could be harmful for human consumption. The current investigation, therefore, aimed to obtain MT-rich extracts from BJ and BC seeds for their safe end uses as antioxidant-rich nutraceutical supplements.

Role of Melatonin in Directing Plant Physiology

“…Mohamed et al [121] observed an improvement in oil quality of rapeseed cultivars due to the priming of Brassica napus L. seeds with MT, which increased the concentration of unsaturated fatty acids like linolenic and oleic acids with reduced glucosinolates and saturated fatty acids such as palmitic and arachidic acids under salinity stress. The application of MT improved yield-related characteristics such as seed yield per plant, 1000 seed weight, seed oil content, and seed yield in mustard [122]. Wang et al [123] investigated the impact of MT on yield traits of soybean and reported an increased number of pods, seeds per pod, and grain yield under stress.…”

Effect of Soaking of Seeds in Water and Storage Period in a Regular Refrigerator to Produce Sprouts of some Vegetables for Marketing Purposes

“…Therefore, as a reminder and encouragement, this type of vegetable was involved in this study. Mustard contains many essential nutritional and medicinal components, as it is an important source of glucosides and omega-3 fatty acids [16]. These two compounds are known for their importance for health, especially in controlling inflammation and some heart diseases.…”