Phytochemicals and Fatty Acids Composition of Sakkoty Date Seeds Related To Their Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activity As a promising Functional Food

In this study, the seeds of the Sakkoty cultivar of date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) underwent analysis for their physical properties and chemical composition. Gas chromatography/mass spectrum (GC-MS) analysis of extracts of defatted normal (unroasted) and roasted seeds revealed the presence of 30 and 29 different phyto-compounds in the n-hexane fraction respectively. These bioactive compounds suggested potential applications of Sakkoty date seeds in future drug discovery systems for various medicinal activities, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, cardiovascular, anticancer, and immunosuppressant properties. Additionally, investigations were conducted on the properties of the oil extracted from these seeds and their fatty acid composition. On average, the seeds contained 5.78% protein, 9.74% fat, and 73.6% carbohydrates. Total antioxidant activity of unroasted and roasted extracts seeds, ranging from 67.8 to 137.8mg AAE/100g. The primary fatty acids present in the seed oils were oleic acid (42%), lauric acid (13.5%), and palmitic acid (12%). It was observed that unroasted date seed powder samples at a concentration of 10 mg/ml demonstrated effectiveness against all tested bacterial species, except Proteus sp. (Gram-negative). Conversely, the roasted sample exhibited lower effectiveness against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus, Proteus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Staphylococcus epidermidis. It was concluded that, unroasted Sakkoty date seed components is more effective than roasted ones and promising for identification a new antimicrobial and antioxidant agent in managing different clinical conditions.