Chemical composition and antioxidant activity of the husk and endosperm of fenugreek seeds

Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) is used as a spice, vegetable and a medicinal plant. In the present study, fenugreek seeds were separated into husk and endosperm. The proximate composition of fenugreek seeds, husk and cotyledons showed that endosperm had the highest saponin (4.63 g/100 g) and protein (43.8 g/100 g) content. In contrast, husk had higher total polyphenols (103.8 mg of gallic acid equivalent/g, and TDF (77.1 g/100 g), comprising IDF (31.9 g/100 g) and SDF (45.2 g/100 g). At 200 μg concentration, extracts of husk, fenugreek seed, and endosperm exhibited 72%, 64%, and 56% antioxidant activity respectively by free-radical scavenging method. The study indicated that separation of fenugreek seeds into husk and endosperm could have advantage of process viability with respect to prior selective fractionation of bioactive components for their effective isolation.