The influence of the species on the quality, chemical composition and antioxidant activity of pumpkin seed oil

Oilseed pumpkin seeds are known to be rich in oil and nutrients. Their content in bioactive components gives them some assets that make them beneficial for human health. Although commonly consumed as a snack, pumpkin seeds are ready to claim more uses. The identification of pumpkin species is a major resource in this study. Thus, we worked with three pumpkin species: Cucurbita maxima (CMa), Cucurbita moschata (CMo) and Cucurbita pepo (CP). The species effect on the chemical composition, the content of bioactive compounds and the antioxidant activity was studied. As a result, the analysis of pumpkin seed oil revealed a polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) content ranging from 52.23% to 57.65%. Our study also revealed that this oil was a good source of phenolic compounds, in particular CMa with a value of 27.52 mg gallic acid equivalents per gram of methanolic extract and 633.51 mg/kg of total tocopherols, which gives it a very strong antioxidant character. In addition, it showed a high antioxidant potency (126.20 ± 20.44) μg/ml for CMa. In this respect, it can be said that the species effect can be a very important factor influencing the nutritional quality of pumpkin seed oil