Fatty acid and carotenoid composition of bitter melon (Momordica charantia L.) seed arils: a potentially valuable source of lycopene

Bitter melon (Momordica charantia L.) is the traditional vegetable used as medicinal food in tropical and subtropical countries, including Korea, China, and India. The present work aimed to determine the content of carotenoids and fatty acid composition from pericarp and seed arils of ripened bitter melon fruits. Using HPLC–DAD, five major carotenoids in the pericarp and six carotenoids in seed arils of ripened bitter melon fruits were quantified. In pericarp, all-E-zeaxanthin was recorded in highest quantity (4.76 μg/g FW), followed by all-E-β-cryptoxanthin (2.68 μg/g FW) and all-E-violaxanthin (1.91 μg/g FW). All-E-lycopene was found as the most dominant carotenoid in red seed arils accounting for 273.15 μg/g (FW) with total carotenoid contents of 360.51 μg/g (FW). Using GC–FID, 11 fatty acids were identified in pericarp and seed arils. In pericarp, palmitic acid (C16:0) was found in highest quantity (29.53%) followed by linoleic acid (LA, C18:2, cis-9,12) (23.69%) and stearic acid (C18:0) (10.21%). In contrast, palmitic acid (39.28%), α-linolenic acid (ALA; C18:3, cis-9,12,15) (19.15%) and LA (15.28%) were the most dominant fatty acids in seed arils. The results of the present investigation revealed that the seed arils of ripened bitter melon fruits are rich sources of lycopene and PUFAs which can be used in food preparations as colorant and flavor enhancer to improve the health benefits, including lowering the risk of coronary heart disease, cancer, xerophthalmia and night blindness.