Phytochemical profile and antioxidant capacity of virgin olive oil obtained from the olive cultivar 'Roghiani' from different regions of northern Libya

Abstract

The aim of this work was to determine the fatty acids (FA), tocopherols, phenols, and antioxidant capacity (AC) of five virgin olive oils (VOO) obtained from the olive cultivar 'Roghiani', from different regions of northern Libya during the crop year 2015. The parameters determined for the oils were investigated for the first time. Seven principal FAs were detected in the VOO samples. Oleic, palmitic, and linoleic acids were the dominant ones. The highest percentage of palmitic acid was found in Tripoli VOO (P lt = 0.05). Oleic acid was dominant in all the VOO samples. Gharyan VOO possessed the highest value of oleic acid, O/L ratio, monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA), total phenols content (TPC), total tocopherol and tocotrienol contents (TTC), and AC(DPPH)% (P lt = 0.05). A strong positive relationship between TPC and (AC) as (1/EC50DPPH) was observed, (r) was +0.831. On the other hand, (1/EC50DPPH) showed a positive correlation with TTC, (r) was +0.768.