Phytochemical study of sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides spp turkestanica) berries from Pakistan

Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides ssp turkestanica) is a very important medicinal plant in the Northern areas of Pakistan. The fruit of sea buckthorn is rich in nutrients and medicinal compounds such as vitamins, carotene, flavonoids, essential oil, carbohydrates, organic acids, amino acids and minerals. In order to compare various populations of sea buckthorn for chemical composition, eight populations from different areas of northern Pakistan were compared using fruit characters. Phytochemical analysis of berries showed vitamin C (250-333 mg/100 g), seed oil (7.69% to 13.7%), oil in softer pulp (19.2% to 29.1%), phytosterol content of seed oil (3.3% to 5.5%), anthocyanin (0.5-25 mg/L ) while the mineral element composition revealed high contents of potassium (140-360 ppm), sodium (20-80 ppm), calcium (70-98 ppm), magnesium (150-240 ppm), iron (40-150 ppm) and phosphorus (110-133 ppm). The study established sea buckthorn berries as a good source of biochemical and mineral elements. The high variation between different populations shows the potential of selecting and breeding of the raw material for various defined purposes. (author abstract)