Fatty acid composition, antioxidant and antibacterial activities of Pistacia lentiscus L. fruit oils

This study was performed on oil extracted from mature fruits of Pistacia lentiscus L. harvested from Northern and North Western Tunisia. Extraction was done by two methods: Traditional method practiced by women in forest areas and pressing method that was proposed to improve the yield and the quality of oil. Fatty acid composition was determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Oleic acid was the main fatty acid with more than 56%, followed by palmitic with 27%. Antioxidant activity of these oils was improved by pressing method; the percentage of inhibition of DPPH was increased from 21 to 43% for Nefza provenance and from 19 to 29% for Bizerte one. Similarly, the highest values of trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) were reached by oils extracted by pressing method. Antibacterial activity was tested against three strains: Escherichia coli,Salmonella typhimurium and Clostridium perfringens. The results showed the existence of a significant bactericidal effect in the case of C. perfringens for oils from Bizerte with an inhibition diameter of about 13 mm for the oil extracted by pressing method and 8 mm for that extracted by traditional one. The effect was not significant in the case of E. coli and S. typhimurium. Key words: Pistacia lentiscus L., fixed oil, fatty acids, antioxidant activity, 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), antibacterial activity.