THE STRUCTURE OF TRIGLYCERIDES OF MONOVARIETAL OLIVE OILS - A C-13-NMR COMPARATIVE-STUDY

The stereospecific distribution of major fatty acids between the 1,3-a nd 2- positions of glycerol in oil samples obtained from the same oliv e cultivar Leccino, grown in different Italian regions, was studied by C-13-NMR-spectroscopy. By this method, the saturated acids were found to be confined to 1,3-positions. Oleic and linoleic acids had common patterns of positional specificities, mostly in 2-position being that of the diunsaturated acid. The results obtained from the present study confirm that C-13-NMR represents a suitable method to perform the ste reospecific analysis of olive oil sn-triglycerides. This paper reports on preliminary results of a research project aimed at defining a chem ical basis for a varietal and geographical classification of olive oil s.