Abstract
Fruits and fruit oil of Semecarpus anacardium (family Anacardiaceae) have several applications in the Indian Ayurvedic and Siddha systems of medicine. Concerning the potential utilization, knowledge of the composition of Semecarpus anacardium oil is of major importance. Solvent extractable lipids from S. anacardium seeds accounted for approx. 36%, which confirms that S. anacardium seeds are a rich source of oil. Linoleic, palmitic and oleic were the major fatty acids. Neutral lipids were the main lipid class followed by glycolipids and phospholipids. beta-sitosterol, campesterol and stigmasterol were the main phytosterols detected in the oil, while delta-tocopherol and beta-tocopherol were the main tocols. S. anacardium seed oil exhibited strong antiradical action toward 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH center dot) radical and galvinoxyl radical. This chapter reviews the chemical composition and functional traits of Semecarpus anacardium seed oil.