Nutraceutical Potential of Oilseeds and By‐Products (Cakes) of Three Underutilized Malvaceae Trees Grown in Sudan

The nutraceutical potential of seed oils and cakes of <i>Adansonia digitata</i>, <i>Grewia tenax</i>, and <i>Thespesia garckeana</i> was evaluated by determining their chemical profile and examining their antioxidant and enzyme inhibitory properties. Oils of <i>G. tenax</i> and <i>T. garckeana</i> were rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids. The cake methanolic extract of <i>T. garckeana</i> revealed the highest antiradical (44.67 mg trolox equivalent (TE)/g extract) and metal chelating (26.38 mg EDTA equivalent/g extract) properties, while the oil of <i>G. tenax</i> displayed the highest Cu⁺⁺ (180.62 mg TE/g extract) and Fe⁺⁺⁺ (82.07 mg TE/g extract) reducing capacity. Pelargonidin and rutin were the dominant antioxidant compounds. The oil of <i>A. digitata</i> displayed the highest anti-acetylcholinesterase (2.44 mg galantamine equivalent (GALAE)/g extract) and butyrylcholinesterase (2.10 mg GALAE/g extract) activity, while its cake exhibited the best α-glucosidase inhibitory activity (1.46 acarbose equivalent (ACAE)/g extract). The cake of <i>T. garckeana</i> exerted the highest α-amylase inhibitory effect (0.71 mmol ACAE/g extract). The highest anti-tyrosinase activity (10.88 mg kojic acid equivalent/g extract) was recorded from the cake of <i>G. tenax</i>. These results indicated that these seeds could be a rich source of antioxidants that target diseases associated with oxidative stress, like diabetes and certain neurological disorders.