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ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Nutritional and Preservative Potential of Tunisian Nigella sativa L. Seeds: Insights into Lipid Composition, Antioxidant Activity, and Antimicrobial Effects
Faouzi Sakouhi 1
,
 
Chaima Saadi 1
,
 
Sadok Boukhchina 1
,
 
Raquel Rodriguez Solana 2,3
 
 
 
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1
Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Cellular Physiopathology and Biomelcules Valorization (LR18ES03), Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Tunis El Manar, El Manar I., Tunisia
 
2
Department of Agroindustry and Food Quality, Andalusian Institute of Agricultural and Fisheries Research and Training (IFAPA), Rancho de la Merced Center, Carretera Cañada de la Loba (CA-3102) Km 3.1., SN, 11471 Jerez de la Frontera, Cádiz, Spain
 
3
MED—Mediterranean Institute for Agriculture, Environment and Development & CHANGE—Global Change and Sustainability Institute, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade do Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal
 
 
Submission date: 2025-06-18
 
 
Final revision date: 2025-12-19
 
 
Acceptance date: 2025-12-28
 
 
Online publication date: 2026-01-12
 
 
Corresponding author
Faouzi Sakouhi   

Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Cellular Physiopathology and Biomelcules Valorization (LR18ES03), Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Tunis El Manar, El Manar I., Tunisia
 
 
 
KEYWORDS
black seeds
phytosterols
tocopherols
policosanols
biological
 
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
Research on new natural resources with nutritional and preservative properties has gained increasing interest among modern consumers and the contemporary food industry. In this context, this study aimed to explore the bioactive potential of Nigella sativa L. seeds collected from various locations in Tunisia. The results highlight the considerable potential of N. sativa seeds for oil production, due to high oil yield (23–28%). These findings also reveal the abundance of bioactive lipids, including linoleic acid (C18:2, 49.66 to 58.47% of total fatty acids), β-sitosterol (88.19 to 100.46 mg/100 g oil), triacontanol (24.13 to 30.48 mg/kg oil), and α-tocopherol (10.38 to 11.51 mg/100 g oil). The hydroethanolic seed extracts exhibited the highest antioxidant activity compared to the ethanol and aqueous extracts, due to their higher contents of phenolic compounds, with total phenolic content ranging from 72.50 to 74.35 mg GAE/g, total flavonoid content from 23.48 to 29.47 mg QE/100 g, and total tannin content from 7.18 to 8.07 mg CE/g. Furthermore, ethanolic extracts showed antibacterial activity against bacterial strains, including Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella enteritidis, and Staphylococcus aureus frequently found in rotten food products. These findings underscore the value of N. sativa seeds as a rich source of natural compounds with good potential for use in food preservation and nutritional enhancement.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We gratefully acknowledge the Ministry of Agriculture of Tunisia for granting permission to collect Nigella seed samples. We also thank Raquel Rodríguez Solana for supporting part of this work through grant RYC2022-036888-I, funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and co-funded by the FSE+.
FUNDING
This work was supported by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research of Tunisia, and by grant RYC2022-036888-I awarded to Raquel Rodríguez Solana, funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and co-funded by the FSE+.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest to influence the work reported in this paper.
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