Studies on the chemical composition and physico-chemical properties of seeds of some wild plants.

The Seeds of the fruits of some wild plants were analysed to establish their proximate compositions and the physico-chemical characteristics of the oils. The iodine values of the oils were not greater than 88 but the saponification values were in the range 157-261 mg KOH. Proximate values of the protein, oil and carbohydrate contents of the seeds suggest that they may be adequate for the formulation of animal feeds, subject to a knowledge of the levels of possible toxic substances. The Storage property of the oil from Lophira lanceolata seed were studied over a period of four weeks under conditions of light (ambient), darkness (ambient) and refrigeration. The iodine value of the oil decreased in all cases but much more so on exposure to light. In contrast, the peroxide value of the oil showed very little change under conditions of darkness and refrigeration over the same period but increased by seven fold for the photo-exposed oil.