| Sekundarni povzetek: |
In the master's thesis, various methods of extracting pumpkin seeds were employed, exploring the biological significance of fatty acids and investigating their isolation from Cucurbita pepo pumpkin seeds. Pumpkin seeds have long been regarded as a nutritionally rich and healthy ingredient containing essential nutrients, including important fatty acids.
For obtaining pumpkin seed extract, conventional extractions – hot maceration, cold maceration, ultrasonic extraction, and Soxhlet extraction were conducted, using petroleum ether as a solvent, along with supercritical extractions using carbon dioxide under different conditions. Saponification was performed, and the fatty acid content was determined using the GC-MS method. It was found that Soxhlet extraction yielded the highest efficiency in conventional extractions (22.78 %), while supercritical extraction achieved the highest efficiency at 400 bar and 60 °C, namely 23.72 %. Fatty acid analysis revealed that oleic acid was the most abundant (22.02-43.45 %), followed by linoleic acid (19.59-41.50 %) and palmitic acid in the range of 0.08-12.58 %. Increasing pressure at a constant temperature of 60 °C resulted in higher contents of oleic and linoleic acids. The fatty acid content in the extracts was comparable regardless of the extraction method used.
In conclusion, the presence of essential fatty acids, especially linoleic and oleic acids in pumpkin seeds, was confirmed, opening avenues for new possibilities in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries. This research contributes to the development of knowledge in the isolation of fatty acids from pumpkin seeds, encouraging further studies to enhance dietary supplements and utilize local resources to improve human health. |