Shotgun approach reveals distinctive lipid profiles in brassica oilseeds: A high-resolution ESI-ToF-MS study

Members of Brassica seed oil are important sources of nutritionally superior edible oil. There are no comprehensive reports on complete lipidomic profile of these oilseed crops. In this study, the lipidomic profiling of edible oil from 7 different cultivated species of Brassica seed oils was performed by shotgun approach using electrospray High Resolution Time of Flight-Mass Spectrometry (ESI-ToF-MS). The mass spectrum under positive polarity revealed 1098 lipids under different lipid classes including sphingolipids, phospholipids and different storage lipids. Under negative polarity, 70 lipids including free fatty acids (FFA), cardiolipins and phospholipids were detected. Erucic acid in FFA form was found to be most abundant in both Yellow and Brown sarson. Brassica napus contains almost all forms of cardiolipins (CL). Out of 26 different species of cardiolipins detected in negative ion mode, CL 56:1 (FA 18:1) and CL 56:1 (FA 22:1) were present only in brown sarson. Similarly, CL 56:2 (FA 18:2) and CL 56:1 (FA 22:1) were present only in Yellow and Brown sarson. These findings enhance our understanding of the nutritional diversity in Brassica seed oils, emphasizing the significance of lipidomic analysis for elucidating the molecular composition of edible oils.