Nigella sativa seeds oil is consumed because of its health benefits. Although the oil has been studied for its properties and composition, these effects are often associated with its major compound thymoquinone, and less has been reported about the other components' contributions to the pharmacological properties and mechanism of action. The present study aimed to evaluate the oil compounds' antioxidant and anti-tumour activities, and its effect on molecular targets associated with the claimed health effects. A wide a range of biochemical and biophysical techniques were used to understand the biological activities of the oil components. Compounds such as thymoquinone and volatile monoterpenes such as α-thujene, α-pynene, sabinene and 3-carene were identified by using GC-MS. Similar high antioxidant activities were obtained for the oil and its non-volatile (NV) fraction, with enzymes inhibition and cytotoxic activity against MCF-7 and A375 cells the oil showed a strong effect but not its NV fraction. Analysis of A375 cells' proteome in contact with the oil showed increased expression of proteins POTEF and HSP 90-b suggesting that the oil's antitumor effect was due to apoptosis and cellular stress. FT-IR studies in two model proteins in contact with the oil allowed oil compounds-protein interactions to be recognized and also showed that volatiles stabilized proteins. Therefore, not only thymoquinone but also the volatile monoterpenes were important for the diversity of properties, and therefore modifications in the chemical composition of the oil, as an outcome of storage or even food preparation, may affect its biological activity.

紫苜蓿食用种子油是因为它有益于健康。尽管已对该油的性质和组成进行了研究，但这些作用通常与其主要化合物胸腺醌有关，而关于其他成分对药理性质和作用机理的贡献的报道则较少。本研究旨在评估油类化合物的抗氧化和抗肿瘤活性，以及​​其对与声称的健康影响相关的分子靶标的影响。广泛的生物化学和生物物理技术被用于了解石油成分的生物活性。使用GC-MS鉴定了化合物，如胸腺醌和挥发性单萜，如α-thujene，α-pyenene，sabinene和3-carene。该油及其非挥发性（NV）馏分获得了相似的高抗氧化活性，同时具有酶抑制作用和针对MCF-7和A375细胞的细胞毒活性，该油显示出强效作用，但未显示其NV馏分。对与油接触的A375细胞蛋白质组的分析表明，蛋白POTEF和HSP 90-b的表达增加，表明该油的抗肿瘤作用是由于细胞凋亡和细胞应激引起的。在与油接触的两种模型蛋白质中进行FT-IR研究可识别出油化合物与蛋白质的相互作用，并且还表明挥发物可稳定蛋白质。因此，不仅胸腺醌而且挥发性单萜类化合物对于性质的多样性也很重要，因此，由于储存甚至准备食物，油的化学组成发生变化，