Comparison of lipid and fatty acid contents of various crops during their growth cycle

The aim of the present work was to compare the lipid and fatty acid (FA) contents of nine different crops belonging to seven botanical families during their different growth stages. The plant species compared were: Camelina sativa and Brassica campestris (Fam. Brassicaceae), Carthamus tinctorius and Helianthus annuus (Fam. Asteraceae), Guizotia abyssinica (Fam. Compositae) Linum usitatissimum, (Fam. Linaceae), Perilla frutescens (Fam. Lamiaceae), Chenopodium quinoa (Fam. Chenopodiaceae), and Salvia hispanica (Fam. Labiatae). Overall, 134 samples of these green crops collected in nine studies, at progressive morphological stages from 2004 to 2013, have been used in this comparison. Lipid content ranged from 10 to 47 g/kg of dry matter. The FA values disclosed quantitative differences between the crops and plant stages. All samples were characterized by a high percentage of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) such as linoleic (LA) and ?-linolenic acid (ALA). These two FAs with palmitic (PA), stearic (SA) and oleic acid (OA) are present in all crops during all growth stages. ALA and LA are the most abundant FAs and ranged from 309 to 649 and from 98 to 218 g/kg of total FA, respectively. Moreover, PA, SA and OA ranged from 85 to 133, from 8 to 116 and from 1 to 167 g/kg of total FA, respectively. These results allow us to identify the best crop and growth stage richer in terms of lipid and PUFA content and therefore potentially more favorable for nutritional purposes.