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Protein content, amino acid and oil composition of two cultivars of Sesamum indicum L. were studied. The cultivars (dark and white) showed ash content in the range of 6.54-7.71%, nitrogen 3.70-4.03%, protein 23.13-25.18% and oil 47.02-49.07%, respectively. Seventeen amino acids were determined including most of the essential and limiting amino acids. Comparison of the present data was made with those reported by the FAO/WHO minimum reference protein. The dark sesame seeds had significantly higher oil and lower protein contents than the white coloured seeds. Oil content were found to be 47.02% and 49.07% in the white and dark coloured seeds, respectively. Analysis by gas liquid chromatography of the oils revealed various fatty acids. The most common recorded in the order of abundance for black and white were: oleic (45.46 and 47.03%), linoleic (33.79 and 35.01%), palmitic (12.03 and 14.02%), stearic (4.93 and 5.72%) and archidic acid (1.00%). Oleic and linoleic were the principal unsaturated fatty acids, while palmitic and stearic were the main saturated fatty acid present. The percentage of the fatty acids fall within the range given by the FAO/WHO committee on fats and oils.
Introduction
Sesamum indicum, L. is an economically important crop which is widely cultivated all over the world and also in the south-western Gizan region of Saudi Arabia. Seeds of sesame are used to garnish bread loafs, in preparation of sweets and desserts, for extraction of oil and the debris of seeds after oil extraction is used as a cattle feed (Bahkali & Moslem, 1996). The sesame seed contains 50% oil and 25% protein. The former is highly resistant to oxidation and the latter has an unique balance of amino acids. Protein helps better than other oil seeds in baking applications (Johnson et al., 1979). The utilization of oilseed meals as supplementary protein source for human consumption has received considerable attention in the recent years (El-Tinay et al., 1976). Yermanos et al. (1972) reported that all analytical data published to date on the quality of sesame oil have shown it to be an excellent and stable edible oil, free from any undesirable nutritional or flavoring components. The crude sesame oil is usually regarded as high in quality and can be obtained from the seeds largely by pressing, followed by...