Oil, protein, antioxidants and free radical scavenging activity of stone from wild olive trees (Olea europaea L.)

The wild olive trees or oleaster (var. sylvestris) and the cultivated olive trees (var. europaea) constitute the two botanical varieties of Olea europaea L. from Mediterranean. In this study, a partial chemical profile was conducted including the total lipids, the fatty acid profiles, soluble proteins, polyphenols, flavanoids contents and antioxidants activities of stone from six oleaster trees. The comparison was made by two olive cultivars cultivated in the same region. The oleaster and cultivar stones were richer in oil content having an average of 8.99 and 7.38 % dry weight basis (DW), respectively. Qualitatively, all studied oils have the same fatty acids profile with the oleic acid C18:1n-9 as the major fatty acid. The oleaster stone oils were richer in monounsaturated fatty acids having an average of 64.87%. They, also, richer in protein content with an average of 198.86 mg/g DW.The globulin is the major fraction, followed by the albumin, the prolamin and the glutemin fractions. The oleaster stone extracts contain polyphenols, flavonoids with an average of 151.14 and 11.91 mg gallic acid equivalent/100g of DW, respectively. The studied extracts showed antioxidant activity using the free radical scavenging activity determined by DPPH and ABTS. The unexploited oleaster stone seems to be a source of oil with good fatty acids balance, in protein and antioxidants metabolites and would be useful for the formulation of supplements and/or pharmaceutical ingredients.