Seed oil content and fatty acid composition in natural populations of Tarenaya longicarpa (Cleomaceae) during the dry and rainy seasons in Northeast Brazil

Tarenaya longicarpa is a tropical species popularly known in several regions of Brazil as “mussambê”. The wide distribution in Brazil and other countries makes the study of the lipid metabolism of this species under different climatic situations relevant. To our knowledge, no studies focused on the seed lipids or the influence of environmental parameters on the oil content and fatty acid profile of T. longicarpa have been developed. Thus, the present study has the purpose of conducting this investigation. The results showed that the oil content of T. longicarpa seeds varied from 15.4 to 42.9% among the three studied sites and between the dry and rainy seasons. Ten fatty acids were identified in the seed oil of the species, with linoleic acid being the main one (39.5–41.9%). The result of the Pearson correlation analysis showed that the content of palmitic (21.3–26.2%) and oleic acids (18.3–27.2%) was strongly influenced by temperature, but in an inverse manner ( r = 0.964 and r = −0.957, respectively). Linoleic acid did not show significant correlation with any of the registered climatic parameters. The PCA analysis showed that temperature was the most influent climatic factor affecting the fatty acid profile of the studied species. The potential use of T. longicarpa seeds as a source of linoleic and oleic acids is highlighted.