Antioxidant and antitumor activities of Artemisia campestris and Thymelaea hirsuta from southern Tunisia.

The essential oil of Artemisia campestris and the ethanol-water, hexane and water extracts of A. campestris and Thymelaea hirsuta collected in southern of Tunisia were investigated for their antioxidant (DPPH, ABTS and beta-carotene methods) and antitumor growth inhibition of human colon cancer HT-29 cells using MTT test activities. All the A.

Gamma-linolenic acid enrichment from Borago officinalis and Echium fastuosum seed oils and fatty acids by low temperature crystallization.

Solvent winterization of seed oil and free fatty acids (FFAs) was employed to obtain gamma-linolenic acid (GLA; 18:3omega6) concentrates from seed oils of two Boraginaceae species, Echium fastuosum and Borago officinalis. Different solutions of seed oils and FFAs from these two oils at 10%, 20% and 40% (w/w) were crystallized at 4 degrees C, -24 degrees C and -70 degrees C, respectively, using hexane, acetone, diethyl ether, isobutanol and ethanol as solvents. Best results were obtained for B.