Comparative Fatty Acid Content of Various Organs of Cassia tora L.

Abstract
Fatty acid content of sicklepod (Cassia tora L.) vegetative organs and seed cuticle was measured by gas-liquid chromatography. Major foliar constituents were palmitate, stearate, oleate, linoleate, and arachidate. Petiolar isostearate content was 14 times that in leaflets; palmitate, stearate, and arachidate petiolar content was lower, and oleate was higher, than in leaflets. Stem fatty acid composition showed increases in palmitate and oleate, whereas stearate and arachidate content was less than that found in leaflets. Seed cuticle composition most closely approximated petiole content except that the concentration of isostearate was less, that of oleate was increased, and that of linoleate was much greater than in petioles. Minor components in all organs were n-, anteiso-, and iso-compounds up to C31.