Characterization of Simmondsia chinensis seeds: radiographic, digital morphometric, and ultrastructural analyses | OCL

Open Access

Issue		OCL Volume 33, 2026


Article Number		11
Number of page(s)		16
Section		Agronomy
DOI		https://doi.org/10.1051/ocl/2026003
Published online		17 March 2026

Abdel-Mageed WM, Bayoumi SA, Salama AA, Salem-Bekhit MM, Abd-Alrahman SH, Sayed HM. 2014. Antioxidant lipoxygenase inhibitors from the leaf extracts of Simmondsia chinensis. Asian Pac J Trop Med 7S1: S521–S526. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1995-7645(14)60284-4. [Google Scholar]
Abobatta WF, Sun X, Mohamed NA. Jojoba Cultivation: A tool for developing marginal lands. In: Hussain WS and Abobatta WF, eds. Achieving Food Security Through Sustainable Agriculture. IGI Global Scientific Publishing, 2024, pp. 229–251. [Google Scholar]
Al-Ani AH, Strain BR, Mooney HA. 1972. The physiological ecology of diverse populations of the desert shrub Simmondsia chinensis. J Ecol 60: 41–57. https://doi.org/10.2307/2258039. [Google Scholar]
Alcaraz L, Zamudio D, Cosío SM, Rodríguez M, Meza R, Orduño A. Diagnóstico de la Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis) (Link)C. K. Schneider, en México. Chapingo: Universidad Autónoma Chapingo. [Google Scholar]
Al-Obaidi JR. Contribution of Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis) products in human health. In: Ozturk M, Hakeem K, eds. Plant and Human Health, Volume 2. Cham (Germany): Springer, 2019, pp. 303–312. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03344-6_12. [Google Scholar]
Al-Obaidi JR, Halabi MF, AlKhalifah NS, Asanar S, Al-Soqeer A, Attia MF. 2017a. A review on plant importance, biotechnological aspects, and cultivation challenges of jojoba plant. Biol Res 50: 25. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40659-017-0131-x. [Google Scholar]
Al-Obaidi JR, Rahmad N, Hanafi NM, Halabi MF, Al-Soqeer A. 2017b. Comparative proteomic analysis of male and female plants in Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis) leaves revealed changes in proteins involved in photosynthesis, metabolism, energy, and biotic and abiotic stresses. Acta Physiol Plant 39: 179. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11738-017-2485-7. [Google Scholar]
Ameen M, Zafar M, Ahmad M, et al. 2023. Assessing the bioenergy potential of novel non-edible biomass resources via ultrastructural analysis of seed sculpturing using microscopic imaging visualization. Agronomy 13: 735–751. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13030735. [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]
Ash GJ, Albiston A, Cother EJ. 2005 Aspects of jojoba agronomy and management. Adv Agron 85: 409–437. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2113(04)85007-7. [Google Scholar]
Ayerza R (H). 1982. Considerações técnicas para o desenvolvimento do cultivo da jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis Link.). I Ciclo de palestras sobre jojoba. Natal (Brasil): Empresa de Pesquisa Agropecuária do Rio Grande do Norte. [Google Scholar]
Ayerza R (H). 1993. Effect of irrigation on jojoba production under arid chaco conditions: II-Seed yields and wax quality. J Am Oil Chem Soc 70: 1225–1228. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02564230. [Google Scholar]
Ayerza R (H). 2020. Variabilidad en el contenido de aceite en la jojoba de Argentina. Rev Mex Cien Agríc 11: 841–852. https://doi.org/10.29312/remexca.v11i4.2074. [Google Scholar]
Azpeitia LG, Labrada-Delgado GJ, Montalvo-González E, Loza-Cornejo S. 2022. Morphometric and anatomical characters of fruits and seeds of a population of Prosopis laevigata (Fabaceae) in Lagos de Moreno, Jalisco, Mexico. Acta Bot Mex 129: e2057. https://doi.org/10.21829/abm129.2022.2057. [Google Scholar]
Bakr ESO, Shetaewi MMA, Amer WA, Abdelsamie AM, Ibrahim IMM. 2025. Influence of biologically treated jojoba meal with or without Alpinia galanga on growth performance and blood profile of weanling rabbits in North Sinai. Egypt J Adv Vet Res 15: 178–184. [Google Scholar]
Bala R. 2020. In vitro seed germination behaviour of Simmondsia chinensis. Modern Res Bot 1: 158–163. [Google Scholar]
Balkaya A, Odabas MS. 2002. Determination of the seed characteristics in some significant snap bean varieties grown in Samsun, Turkey. Pak J Biol Sci 5: 382–387. https://doi.org/10.3923/pjbs.2002.382.387. [Google Scholar]
Barracosa P, Osório J, Cravador A. 2007. Evaluation of fruit and seed diversity and characterization of carob (Ceratonia siliqua L.) cultivars in Algarve region. Sci Hortic 114: 250–257. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scienta.2007.06.024. [Google Scholar]
Bianchini VJM, Mascarin GM, Silva LCAS, et al. 2021. Multispectral and X-ray images for characterization of Jatropha curcas L. seed quality. Plant Methods 17: 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13007-021-00709-6. [Google Scholar]
Brasil, Regras para Análise de Sementes (RAS). WikiSDA: Laboratórios – Metodologia – Sementes. Ministério da Agricultura e Pecuária - MAPA, Brasília, 2025. Available from: https://wikisda.agricultura.gov.br/pt-br/Laboratórios/Metodologia/Sementes/RAS_2024 [Google Scholar]
Carvalho MLM, Alves RA, Oliveira LM. 2010. Radiographic analysis in castor bean seeds (Ricinus communis L.). Rev Bras Sementes 32: 170–175. https://doi.org/10.1590/s0101-31222010000100019. [Google Scholar]
Carvalho NM, Nakagawa J. 2012. Sementes: - Ciência, Tecnologia e Produção. 5th ed. Jaboticaba: Funep. [Google Scholar]
Castellanos AE, Molina FE. 1990 Differential survivorship and establishment in Simmondsia Chinensis (jojoba). J Arid Environ 19: 65–76. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-1963(18)30830-9. [Google Scholar]
Castro EM, Pinho ÉVDeRV, Lima AE, et al. 2024. Physiological quality, lignin and the ultrastructural characterization of soybean seeds. Acta Sci Agron 46: e63621. https://doi.org/10.4025/actasciagron.v46i1.63621. [Google Scholar]
Cervantes E, Martín JJ, Saadaoui E. 2016. Updated methods for seed shape analysis. Scientifica 2016: 5691825. https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/5691825. [Google Scholar]
Cruz CD, Ferreira F, Pessoni LA. 2020. Biometria aplicada ao estudo da diversidade genética, 2nd ed. Viçosa: Universidade Federal de Viçosa. [Google Scholar]
Duc NT, Ramlal A, Rajendran A, et al. 2023. Image-based phenotyping of seed architectural traits and prediction of seed weight using machine learning models in soybean. Front Plant Sci 14: 1–15. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2023.1206357. [Google Scholar]
El-Emam MA, Zhou L, Shi WD, Sobhi M. 2023. Determination of some engineering properties of Jojoba granular matter [Simmondsia chinensis]. Granul Matter 25: 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10035-023-01313- 2. [Google Scholar]
El-Seesy AI, He Z, Hassan H, Balasubramanian D. 2020. Improvement of combustion and emission characteristics of a diesel engine working with Diesel/jojoba oil blends and butanol additive. Fuel 279: 118433. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2020.118433. [Google Scholar]
Fawzai N, Fawzy A, Mohamend AAH. 2010. Seed morphological studies on some species of Siline L. (Caryophyllaceae). Int J Bot 6: 287–292. https://doi.org/10.3923/ijb.2010.287.292. [Google Scholar]
Felix FC, Luiza M, Castro DL, Mattos W, Teixeira A. 2018. Biometria de sementes de espécies florestais da Caatinga por meio da análise de imagens. Informativo ABRATES 28: 46–50. [Google Scholar]
Felix FC, Das Chagas KPT, Araújo FS, et al. 2024. Image analysis of seeds and machine learning as a tool for distinguishing populations: applied to an invasive tree species. Acta Scientiarum - Agronomy 46: 1–11. https://dor.org/10.4025/actasciagron.v46i1.62658. [Google Scholar]
Ferreira T, Rasband W. 2012. ImageJ User Guide-IJ1.46r. Bethesda. [Google Scholar]
Figueiredo S. 1989. Germinação de sementes de jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis (link) Schneider). Rev Bras Fisiol Veg 1: 99–107. [Google Scholar]
Gad HA, Roberts A, Hamzi SH, et al. 2021. Jojoba Oil: An updated comprehensive review on chemistry, pharmaceutical uses, and toxicity. Polymers 13: 1711. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym13111711. [Google Scholar]
Geetha V, Balamurungan P, Bhaskaran M. 2011. Characterization of mustard genotypes through image analysis. Res J Seed Sci 4: 192–198. https://doi.org/10.3923/rjss.2011.192.198. [Google Scholar]
Gentry HS. 1958. The natural history of Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis) and its cultural aspects. Econ Bot 12: 261–295. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02860078. [Google Scholar]
Hair JF, Black WC, Babin BJ, Anderson RE. 2019. Multivariate data analysis. Eighth Edi. Andonver: Cengage Learning. [Google Scholar]
Hamerlynck EP, Huxman TE. 2009. Ecophysiology of two Sonoran Desert evergreen shrubs during extreme drought. J Arid Enviro 73: 582–585. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaridenv.2008.11.012. [Google Scholar]
IMARC GROUP, Global Jojoba Oil Market to Reach 22,000 Tons by 2028. [Internet], Available from: http://www.imarcgroup.com/global-jojoa-oil-market [Google Scholar]
Ismail AMA. 1988. The ecological and agronomic role of seed polymorphism in Simmondsia chinensis. J Arid Environ 14: 35–42. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-1963(18)31094-2. [Google Scholar]
Khairi MMA. Genetics and Breeding of Jojoba [Simmondsia chinensis (Link) Schneider]. In: Al-Khayri J, Jain S and Johnson D, eds. Advances in Plant Breeding Strategies: Industrial and Food Crops. Cham (Switzerland): Springer, 2019, pp. 237–276. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23265-8_8. [Google Scholar]
Khairy T, Amin DH, Salama HM, et al. 2025. Pioneering study of Egyptian Neem and Jojoba extracts with molecular docking combat hospital multidrug resistant bacteria. Braz J Microbiol 56: 425–445. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42770-024-01590-w. [Google Scholar]
Köhler E. Simmondsiaceae, in Flowering Plants Dicotyledons. In: Kubitzki K, Bayer C, eds. The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants. Heidelberg (Germany): Springer, Berlin, 2003, pp. 355–358. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-07255-4_40. [Google Scholar]
Kotwaliwale N, Singh K, Kalne A, Jha SN, Seth N, Kar A. 2011. X-ray imaging methods for internal quality evaluation of agricultural produce. J Food Sci Technol 51: 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-011-0485-y. [Google Scholar]
Lei Q, Li T. 2015. Functional monoesters of jojoba oil can be produced by enzymatic interesterification: reaction analysis and structural characterization. Eur J Lipid Sci Technol 117: 630–636. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejlt.201400458. [Google Scholar]
Li J, Jaganathan G, Han X, Liu B. 2024. Ultrastructural and thermal analyses reveal novel insights into low-temperature survival mechanisms of hydrated seeds of Poaceae species from alpine regions. Plant Divers 47: 643–652. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pld.2024.09.010. [Google Scholar]
Loddo A, Di Ruberto C, Vale AMPG, Ucchesu M, Soares JM, Bacchetta G. 2023. An effective and friendly tool for seed image analysis. Vis Comput 39: 335–352. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00371-021-02333-w. [Google Scholar]
Marcos-Filho J. Teste de Vigor: Importância e Utilização. In: Krzyzanowski FC, Vieira RD, França-Neto JB, Marcos-Filho J, eds. Vigor de Sementes: Conceitos e Testes. Londrina (Brazil), Associação Brasileira de Tecnologia de Sementes – ABRATES, 2020, pp. 17–77. [Google Scholar]
Martín-Gómez JJ, Rodríguez-Lorenzo JL, Gutiérrez del Pozo D, et al. 2024. Seed morphological analysis in species of Vitis and relatives. Horticulturae 10: 285–303. https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae10030285. [Google Scholar]
Medeiros AD, Pinheiro DT, Xavier WA, Silva LJ, Dias DCFS. 2020a. Quality classification of Jatropha curcas seeds using radiographic images and machine learning. Ind Crops Prod 146: 112162. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indcrop.2020.112162. [Google Scholar]
Medeiros A, Silva LJ, Silva JM, Dias DS, Pereira MD. 2020b. IJCropSeed: An open-access tool for high-throughput analysis of crop seed radiographs. Comput Electron Agr 175: 105555. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compag.2020.105555. [Google Scholar]
Meyer SE. Simmondsia chinensis (Link) Schneid. Jojoba. In: Bonner FT, Karrfalt RP, eds. The Woody Plant Seed Manual. Agriculture handbook. Washington DC (U.S): Department of Agriculture - Forest Service, 2008, pp. 1049–1051. [Google Scholar]
Meza R, Núñez CA, Cabada CA. 2017. Caracterización morfológica de Simmondsia chinensis (Link). C.K. Schneid. en condiciones de riego. Rev Mex Cienc Forestales 8: 77–99. https://doi.org/10.29298/rmcf.v8i42.20. [Google Scholar]
Mohamed SA, Farouk A, Abdel-Razek AG, Nashy E, El-Sakhawy M, Badr AN. 2025. Carboxymethyl cellulose/shellac composite loaded with pomegranate extract and jojoba oil as anti-mycotic and anti-mycotoxigenic food packaging materials. Sci Rep 15: 955. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-81933-7. [Google Scholar]
Mohammady EY, Soaudy MR, Elashry MA, Hassaan MS. 2025. Assessment of the nutritional impact of substituting fishmeal with enzymatically hydrolyzed jojoba meal (Simmondsia chinensis) in the diets of Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus. Aquaculture 596: 741888. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2024.741888. [Google Scholar]
Nashy E-SHA, Abo-ELwafa GA, Aly SM, Masoued RA, Elsayed H. 2024. Non-ionic fatliquoring and lubricating agents based on ethoxylated jojoba fatty acids. Waste Biomass Valor 15: 637–648. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12649-023-02227-z. [Google Scholar]
Nogueira AC, Medeiros ACS. 2007. Extração e Beneficiamento de Sementes Florestais Nativas: Circular Técnica. Colombo: Embrapa Florestal. [Google Scholar]
Nogueira FPN, Oliveira AB, Pereira M, Fátima QL, Silva RT. 2017. Effectivity of X-ray test to evaluate the physiological quality of sesame seeds due to fruits position at the plant. Rev Bras Ciênc Agrár 12: 435–440. https://doi.org/10.5039/agraria.v12i4a5474. [Google Scholar]
Otsu N. 1979. A threshold selection method from gray-level histograms. IEEE Trans Syst Man Cybern 9: 62–66. https://doi.org/10.1109/TSMC.1979.4310076. [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]
R Core Team. 2021. R: A language and environment for statistical computing. Vienna, Austria: R Foundation for Statistical Computing. [Google Scholar]
Ribeiro AS, Neri TF, Medeiros AD, Milagres CC, Silva L. 2021. Use of radiographic images for rapid and non-destructive assessment of crambe seed quality. J Seed Sci 43: e202143001. https://doi.org/10.1590/2317-1545v43239136. [Google Scholar]
Rost TL, White JC, Wilson GG, Keeley PE. 1977. Anatomy of Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis) seed and the utilization of liquid wax during germination. Econ Bot 31: 140–147. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02866583. [Google Scholar]
Saadaoui E, Martín JJ, Bouazizi R, et al. 2015. Phenotypic variability and seed yield of Jatropha curcas L. Introduced to Tunisia. Act Bot Mex 110: 119–134. https://doi.org/10.21829/abm110.2015.193. [Google Scholar]
Sadek S, El-Batran E. 2020. Economic study for the production of Jojoba in Egypt. Alex J Agri Sci 65: 39–52. [Google Scholar]
Sánchez JA, Pernús M, Barrios D. Gutiérrez A. 2024. Protocolo para germinar y conservar semillas de plantas nativas cubanas: un enfoque con rasgos funcionales de semillas. Acta Bot Cub 223. [Google Scholar]
Schneider CA, Rasband WS, &Eliceiri KW. 2012. NIH Image to ImageJ: 25 years of image analysis. Nat Methods 9: 671–675. https://doi.org/10.1038/nmeth.2089. [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
Silva JÁ, Medeiros AD, Pereira MD, Ramos AKF, Silva LJ. 2020. Seed quality analysis of Senna siamea Lam. using image analysis techniques. J Seed Sci 42: 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1590/2317-1545v42241633. [Google Scholar]
Sokal R, Rohlf J. 1962. The comparison of dendrograms by objetive methods. Taxon 11: 33–40. https://doi.org/10.2307/1217208. [Google Scholar]
Soroka AI, Totsky IV, Lyakh VA. 2017. Inheritance of rounded seed shape in sunflower. Helia 40: 189–196. https://doi.org/10.1515/helia-2017-0020. [Google Scholar]
Tausch S, Leipold M, Reisch C, Poschold P. 2024. How precisely can x-ray predict the viability of wild flower plant seeds? Seed Sci Technol 52: 109–123. https://doi.org/10.15258/sst.2024.52.1.10. [Google Scholar]
Trujillo HA, Gomes-Junior FG, Mendoza NR, Trujillo CH. 2021. Gray scale of radiographic images in the assessment of degree moisture in soybean seeds. Acta Agron 70: 304–310. https://doi.org/10.15446/acag.v70n3.88319. [Google Scholar]
Uppar R, Dinesha P, Kumar S. 2024. Yield optimization of nonedible vegetable oil-based bio-lubricant using design of experiments. Environ Dev Sustain 26: 29557–29582. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-024-04529-1. [Google Scholar]
Yermanos DM, Duncan C. 1976. Jojoba seed: Phenotypic within plant variability in wax content and composition. J Am Oil Chem Soc 53: 700–703. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02586342. [Google Scholar]

Current usage metrics show cumulative count of Article Views (full-text article views including HTML views, PDF and ePub downloads, according to the available data) and Abstracts Views on Vision4Press platform.

Data correspond to usage on the plateform after 2015. The current usage metrics is available 48-96 hours after online publication and is updated daily on week days.

Initial download of the metrics may take a while.