Abstract:
Flaxseed is considered an indispensable generally recognized as safe (GRAS) source of polyphenolic lignans, poly-
unsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), fibers as well as minerals and vitamins. The metabolite content of flaxseed reflects its
nutritional and medicinal value. Therefore, the selection of flaxseed variety for food industry is dependent on its
metabolome. A metabolomics approach based on liquid or gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry has been
applied to discriminate different flaxseed cultivars that are commercially available in Egypt. The available Sakha cul-
tivars were subjected to a comprehensive metabolomics and lipidomics approach for investigation of their metabolomes.
Our results showed that among the screened cultivars, Sakha 6, with its yellow-colored testa, showed marked metabolic
discrimination. This yellow cultivar showed high accumulation of essential amino acids. Additionally, the oil of this
cultivar accumulated the highest content of the two essential PUFA: alpha-linolenic acid (an u-3 fatty acid) and linoleic
acid (an u-6 fatty acid). Interestingly, the content of the main antinutritional cyanogenic glycosides such as linustatin and
neolinustatin was lower, while, the content of medicinally-important secondary metabolites was higher in Sakha 6
cultivar. These results support the use of this cultivar for human consumption owing to its high nutritional and me-
dicinal value
