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Neem oil is a vegetable oil pressed from the fruits and seeds of the neem (''Azadirachta indica''), an evergreen tree which is endemic to the Indian subcontinent and has been introduced to many other areas in the tropics. It is the most important of the commercially available products of neem for organic farming and medicines. Neem oil varies in color; it can be golden yellow, yellowish brown, reddish brown, dark brown, greenish brown, or bright red. It has a rather strong odor that is said to combine the odours of peanut and garlic. It is composed mainly of triglycerides and contains many triterpenoid compounds, which are responsible for the bitter taste. It is hydrophobic in nature; in order to emulsify it in water for application purposes, it must be formulated with appropriate surfactants. Azadirachtin is the most well known and studied triterpenoid in neem oil. The azadirachtin content of neem oil varies from 300ppm to over 2500ppm depending on the extraction technology and quality of the neem seeds crushed. Nimbin is another triterpenoid which has been credited with some of neem oil's properties as an antiseptic, antifungal, antipyretic and antihistamine.〔W. Kraus, "Biologically active ingredients-azadirachtin and other triterpenoids", in: H. Schutterer (Ed.), ''The Neem Tree Azadirachta indica A. Juss and Other Meliaceous Plants'', Weinheim, New York, 1995, p 35-88〕 Neem oil also contains several sterols, including (campesterol, beta-sitosterol, stigmasterol). ==Neem oil method== The method of processing is likely to affect the composition of the oil, since the methods used, such as pressing (expelling) or solvent extraction are unlikely to remove exactly the same mix of components in the same proportions. The neem oil yield that can be obtained from neem seed kernels also varies widely in literature from 25% to 45%. The oil can be obtained through pressing (crushing) of the seed kernel both through cold pressing or through a process incorporating temperature controls 40 TO 50 C. Neem seed oil can also be obtained by solvent extraction of the neem seed, fruit, oil, cake or kernel. A large industry in India extracts the oil remaining in the seed cake using hexane. This solvent-extracted oil is of a lower quality as compared to the cold pressed oil and is mostly used for soap manufacturing. Neem cake is a by-product obtained in the solvent extraction process for neem oil. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Neem oil」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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