The many nutritional, pharmaceutical and industrial applications of oils extracted from plant seeds have in recent years generated growing scientific interest in the search for new unconventional oilseed sources. The needs of the oilseed market and the detection of new functionalities have aroused, at national level, an interest in scientific and technical research towards local plant oilseed sources, which are still under-exploited. The objective of this study was to extract the oils of Ricinodendron heudelotii, Cyperus esculentus, Citrullus colocynthis and Irvingia gabonensis and then to characterize them from a physico-chemical and nutritional point of view in order to evaluate their potential for use in the food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. To do so, we evaluated their ability to resist oxidation through the measurement of oxidation indices. The results of this work showed a progressive increase in acidity and p-anisidine index, and a progressive decrease in peroxide value during storage at room temperature for 180 days. It appears that Ricinodendron heudelotii, Citrullus colocynthis, Cyperus esculentus and Irvingia gabonensis oils have chemical and biochemical potentials that could be exploited in the food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical fields.
Keywords: Citrullus colocynthis, Cyperus esculentus, Irvingia gabonensis, Oxidative properties, Ricinodendron heudelotii, Vegetable oils
