Content of Omega-3 Fatty Acids in some Salvia Species.

Salvia species, the most important medical plants, are classified to be in Dicotyledonaeof Tubiflorae team of Lamiaceae family. The plants of Lamiaceae family are mostly herbs and weeds mainly spread on Mediterranean. This study is aimed to determine fatty acid composition of four Salvia species collected from cultivars grown in Cumra ecological conditions. Leaves of the plants were grinded in grinding mill in 1 mm sieve size. Soxhlet extraction was used for isolation of fatty acids, using hexane as a solvent. Analyses were done by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Significant difference was observed in the linolenic acid content of Salvia species. The highest content of linolenic acid was determined in S. sclarea (38.23%), while 28.69% and 8,52% were found for S. nomerosa, and S. officinalis, respectively. The lowest linolenic acid content was found in S.triloba (7.26%). The S. sclarea also had the highest polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) content (51.72%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]