Fatty acid composition of seed lipids of holy basil (Ocimum tenuiflorum L.) and common basil (Ocimum basilicum L.)

The article presents the results of study of the fatty acid composition of seed lipids of two basil species du ring the period of 2020‒2023. Species specificity and variability in the content of oleic and α-linolenic acids were noted. The predominant fatty acids in the seed lipids of holy basil (Ocimum tenuiflorum L.) are α-linolenic (more than 56 %) and linoleic (more than 20 %) acids, and in the seed lipids of common basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) ‒ α-linolenic (about 47 %), oleic (about 21 %) and linoleic (about 20 %) acids. It was found that in 2022 (the lowest amount of precipitation for the period from May to August compared to 2020, 2021 and 2023), the content of linoleic acid increased: the coefficient of variation (CV) was 9.40 % for holy basil and 7.34 % for common basil, and the content of α-linolenic acid decreased: CV was 4.34 and 6.39 %, respectively, for holy and common basil. In 2023 (the smallest temperature deviations for the period from May to August from the climatic norm), an increase in the content of palmitic and stearic acids and a decrease in the content of linoleic acid were observed for holy basil, and an increase in the content of α-linolenic acid for common basil was seen. The both types of basil have the lowest oleic acid content in 2023.

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