Eruca Sativa (Taramira) Seed Oil
Sap Value: 168.1
CAS Number: 90028-42-5
Extraction: Cold Pressed (has biggest yield)
INCI: Eruca sativa Seed Oil
Specific Gravity: 0.910
Iodine Value 137.00
Introduction
Taramira oil, commonly known as Jamba oil comes from the seeds of Rocket Salad or Arugula. The Latin name for this plant is Eruca vesicaria (Blamey and Grey-Wilson, 1989). The Eruca vesicaria is an edible annual plant that is very resistant to adverse weather conditions such as droughts. This makes Taramira oil popular in locations that experience poor rainfall, especially in Pakistan, Northern India, and other parts of West Asia (Sindhu and Kantaraj, 1989).
Eureka sativa is a species of Eurca that is native to Mediterranean regions, such as Morocco, Portugal, Egypt, Turkey, and Lebanon (The MED-CHECKLIST, 2021). It belongs to the Brassicaceae family which also includes other commonly flowering plants such as the cruciferous vegetables i.e. cabbage, cauliflower, mustards and horseradish.
Visually, the Eruca vesicaria grows between 20-100 centimetres in height. The leaves are pinnated which means they are, “a compound leaf that has leaflets arranged in 2 rows either side of a midrib like a feather.” The flowers are between 2-4 cm, creamy white, and arranged in a corymb and is common in the brassicaceae family (Hickey and King, 2000). The siliqua pod is between 12 and 25 mm long and contains several edible seeds.(Huxley, Griffiths and Levy, 1999).
The plant is a popular herb that has been grown and consumed since Roman times. The Ancient Egyptians and Romans both considered the leaves of the Taramira to be an aphrodisiac (Sastry, 2003; Padulosi and Pignone, 1997). This plant has been used over time for a wide variety of reasons. The tender fresh parts of the plant have been traditionally used in salads and as an herb or spice.
It has been used for various medicinal purposes; as a tonic, rubefacient, astringent, digestive, laxative, emollient, stimulant, stomachic, and aphrodisiac (S JAAFAR and S JAAFAR, 2019). In addition, within traditional medicine, Rocket has been used for the management of cardiovascular-related issues, especially hypertension (Salma, Khan and Shah, 2018) It also has a positive effect on male fertility. The oil can be used for cooking as an addition to salads, for massage, to soothe the skin, during soap production and as an adulterant for mustard oil to impart a spicy taste.
Physical and Chemical Characteristics
Eruca vesicaria is highly rich in potassium and Vitamin C. Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is an essential vitamin that supports metabolism and aids in the absorption of other vitamins, micronutrients, and minerals. It also aids in maintaining a healthy immune system, contributes to the formation of essential hormones such as adrenaline and noradrenaline and helps cells within the body communicate with each other. Potassium helps the body regulate fluid balance, regulates muscular contraction and helps the nervous system to relay messages between the brain and body. (McCormick, 2013).
E.sativa seed extract contains a significant amount of metabolites such as alkaloids, tannins, phenols, flavonoids, saponins and ascorbic acid. Rocket salad types are very rich in antioxidant complexes as they are a source of vitamins such as ascorbic acid, carotenoids, and polyphenols. It also contains a large amount of Erucic acid a monosaturated omega-9 fatty acid commonly found in the brassica family. Erucic acid is also known as cis-13-docosenoic acid and the trans isomer is known as brassidic acid (WIKI). While Erucic acid has many shared uses with mineral oils, it is comparatively more biodegradable. It can be also converted to use as a precursor for biodiesel fuel as well as lubricants or surfactants ((Bao, Pollard and Ohlrogge, 1998)
E. Sativa oil and extract was tested for it’s antimicrobial properties against gram positive and gram negative bacteria and it was found that the, “Seed oil showed maximum inhibition of growth against all the antibiotic-resistant bacteria. MIC values for the Eruca seed oil showed that this oil had almost equal activity with respect of the broad-spectrum antibiotic Gentamicine.”(Sadiq, A et al, 2011).
Taramira Seed Oil Fatty Acid Profile
Eruca sativa Seed Oil and Hair Growth
Hair growth occurs during three separate stages: the long growing phase (anagen phase), the brief transitional apoptotic phase (catagen) and the resting phase (telogen) (Safaeian, Shatalebi, Baradaran and Alamdarian, 2016). It is thought that when added to hair it increases the length and weight of hairs and the hair follicle levels in the anagen phase. This can be attributed to Eruca sativa containing a large number of polyphenols and flavanoids which promote hair growth; they are able to stimulate hair growth via the combined effect of nourishing hair follicles and increase blood flow to the area (Safaeian, Shatalebi, Baradaran and Alamdarian, 2016).
Skin Health
Taramira oil also is considered pharmaceutically stable and non sensitising. Due to indole-3-carbiol content it is considered a soothing oil and can be very useful for individuals who suffer from skin inflammation such as eczema, psoriasis and even for chronic conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. In addition, Taramira oil contains a pungent compound known as allyl isothiocyanate which also exhibits anti-inflammatory properties.
Kim B, et al, 2014 studied the use of euric sativa on patients with atopic dermatitis and conclude that it has anti inflammatory benefits and promotes the skin barrier function. They put this down to E.Sativa flavanoids: quercetin and isorhamnetin. It has been shown to inhibit elastase (enzyme that degrades elastine) and can therefor may prevent sagging skin (Eid AM, et al, 2020). Adding it to skincare products could help stability in terms of harmful microbes as it has been found to have, “partial bioactivity against the growth of microbes” - though it has no antifungal activity. It also has a sun protection factor of 5.57 so may be a useful addition to sun care products. (IBID)
Comments
This slightly green oil has a pungent, lingering scent, similar to horseradish and wasabi. This is from the allyl isothiocyanate present in the oil. I used it neat on my scalp and it stung for around 30-40 minutes. I have also used it neat on dandruff and I was amazed at how it worked; the following day there was no dandruff present.
References
Bao, X., Pollard, M. and Ohlrogge, J., 1998. The Biosynthesis of Erucic Acid in Developing Embryos ofBrassica rapa. Plant Physiology, 118(1), pp.183-190.
Blamey, M. and Grey-Wilson, C., 1989. The illustrated flora of Britain and northern Europe. London: Hodder & Stoughton.
Eid AM, Jaradat NA, Al-Masri M, Issa L, Zubidat F, Asrawi H, Ahmad S. Development and Antimicrobial Evaluation of Eruca Sativa Oil Nanoemulgel with Determination of the Oil Antioxidant, Sun Protection Factor and Elastase Inhibition. Curr Pharm Biotechnol. 2020;21(3):244-255. doi: 10.2174/1389201021666200110095930. PMID: 31924154.
Gulfraz, Muhammad & Sadiq, Alia & Tariq, Hira & Imran, Muhammad & Qureshi, Rahmatullah. (2011). Phytochemical analysis and antibacterial activity of Eruca sativa seed. Pakistan Journal of Botany. 43. 1351-1359.
Hickey, M. and King, C., 2000. The Cambridge illustrated glossary of botanical terms. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Huxley, A., Griffiths, M. and Levy, M., 1999. The new RHS dictionary of gardening. London: Macmillan.
McCormick, D., 2013. Fundamental Neuroscience (Fourth Edition). Academic Press.
Padulosi, S. and Pignone, D., 1997. Rocket. Rome, Italy: International Plant Genetic Resources Institute.
S JAAFAR, N. and S JAAFAR, I., 2019. ERUCA SATIVA LINN.: PHARMACOGNOSTICAL AND PHARMACOLOGICAL PROPERTIES AND PHARMACEUTICAL PREPARATIONS. Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical and Clinical Research, pp.39-45.
Safaeian, L., Shatalebi, M., Baradaran, A. and Alamdarian, M., 2016. Preparation and evaluation of a hair wax containing propolis and Eruca sativa seed oil for hair growth. Advanced Biomedical Research, 5(1), p.182.
Salma, U., Khan, T. and Shah, A., 2018. Antihypertensive effect of the methanolic extract from Eruca sativa Mill., (Brassicaceae) in rats: Muscarinic receptor-linked vasorelaxant and cardiotonic effects. Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 224, pp.409-420.
Sastry, E., 2003. TARAMIRA (ERUCA SATIVA) AND ITS IMPROVEMENT - A REVIEW. Agricultural Review,.
Sindhu, K. and Kantaraj, U., 1989. Studies on taramira (eruca sativa) seed oil and meal. Journal of the American Oil Chemists' Society, 66(1), pp.139-140.
Uğur A, Süntar I, Aslan S, et al. Variations in fatty acid compositions of the seed oil of Eruca sativa Mill. caused by different sowing periods and nitrogen forms. Pharmacognosy Magazine. 2010 Oct;6(24):305-308. DOI: 10.4103/0973-1296.71801.
Ww2.bgbm.org. 2021. The MED-CHECKLIST. [online] Available at: <http://ww2.bgbm.org/mcl/PTaxonDetail.asp?NameId=23937&PTRefFk=1275> [Accessed 25 April 2021]
Kim B, Choi YE, Kim HS. Eruca sativa and its flavonoid components, quercetin and isorhamnetin, improve skin barrier function by activation of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-α and suppression of inflammatory cytokines. Phytother Res. 2014 Sep;28(9):1359-66. doi: 10.1002/ptr.5138. Epub 2014 Mar 9. PMID: 24610745.