Agro-morphological Characters, Total Phenolic Content, and Fatty Acid Compositions of Safflower Genetic Resources

Background: Safflower is an important crop that does not require rich soils. It grows well in dry soils or arid areas with seasonal rain. Exploring the fatty acid profiles and agro-morphological characteristics of diversified collections of safflower provides baseline data for developing improved varieties. In this study, we investigated the variation in agro-morphological characteristics, fatty acid composition and total phenolic content of the seeds, and the relationship between the agro-morphological and biochemical characteristics. Methods and Results: Agro-morphological characteristics were recorded in the field and laboratory. Total phenolic content was estimated using Folin-Ciocalteu’s method and fatty acids were determined using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Orange, red, and white petal colors were observed; orange was the dominant pigment. Wide ranges of other agro-morphological characteristics were also recorded. More than 87% of the accessions contained > 50% linoleic acid while approximately 12% of the accessions contained > 50% oleic acid. A strong correlation was observed between palmitic and linoleic acid, and crude fat and oleic acid. A strong negative correlation was observed between crude fat and linoleic acid, palmitic and oleic acid, and oleic and linoleic acid. Conclusions: Safflower accessions were found to be a poor indicator of essential linolenic acid. The wide variation in agro-morphological and biochemical traits of safflower accessions could potentially help to develop an improved, nutrient-dense safflower cultivar.