Grewia bicolor seed oil: Putative pharmaceutical, cosmetic and industrial uses

• Free fatty acids were isolated and quantified from Grewia bicolor seed oil extract.
• G. bicolor seeds yielded 4.8% oil and had palmitic (11.46%), stearic (5.77%), oleic (19.33%) and linoleic (54.41%) acids
• The acid , iodine and saponification values were higher than most nutritionally and ethnomedicinally relevant seed oils.
• We report the potential use of G. bicolor seed as an ingredient the manufacture of soaps, pharmaceutical and cosmetic products, based on the physicochemical characteristics.

The physicochemical characterisation, seed oil content and fatty acid profile of oil extracts from Grewia bicolor seeds collected in Zimbabwe were performed using standard extraction and chromatographic techniques. The main objective was to determine the potential domestic and industrial usefulness of the G. bicolor seeds. The G. bicolor seeds yielded 4.80% of brownish-orange oil that had an acceptable odour. The seed oil consisted of saturated (20.20%), monounsaturated (25.10%) and polyunsaturated (54.41%) fatty acids. Palmitic acid (11.46%), stearic acid (5.77%), oleic acid (19.33%) and linoleic acid (54.41%) were the main fatty acids in G. bicolor seed oil. The oil had a high acid value (0.53 mg KOH/g), iodine value (39.21 g I2/100 g oil) and saponification value (130.43 mg KOH/g) compared to published data on other nutritionally and ethnomedicinally important plant seed oils.We conclude that the G. bicolor seeds are low oil yielding, whose oil could be used as a potential source of palmitic, stearic, oleic and linoleic acids and may potentially be utilized as an industrial ingredient in the manufacture of soaps, pharmaceutical products, and cosmetics. Further studies are required to explore the possibility of using this seed oil in industry.