Comparative Study on Hypericum triquetrifolium Turra Fatty Acids

The leaves of nine populations of Hypericum triquetrifolium Turra growing wild in Tunisia were investigated for their fatty acids composition. Although, their low yields, total fatty acids composition showed an appreciable amount of α-linolenic acid (C18:3), linoleic acid (C18:2), oleic acid (C18:1) and palmitic acid (C16:0). Stearidonic acid (C18:4), an unusual plant fatty acid was also found. A one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed significant differences between studied populations. However, multivariate analysis showed that H. triquetrifolium samples were grouped according to their origin apart from three populations.