Supercritical fluid fractionation of fish oil esters using incremental pressure programming and a temperature gradient

Substrate structure and computation guided engineering of a lipase for omega-3 fatty acid selectivity

Enrichment of omega-3 fatty acids (ɷ-3 FAs) in natural oils is important to realize their health benefits. Lipases are promising catalysts to perform this enrichment, however, fatty acid specificity of lipases is poor. We attempted to improve the fatty acid selectivity of a lipase from Geobacillus thermoleovorans (GTL) by two approaches. In a semi-rational approach, amino acid positions critical for binding were identified by docking the substrate to the GTL and best substitutes at these positions were identified by site saturation mutagenesis followed by screening to obtain a variant of GTL (CM-GTL). In the second approach based on rational design, a variant of GTL was designed (DM-GTL) wherein the active site was narrowed by incorporating two heavier amino acids in the lining of acyl-binding pocket to hinder access to bulky ɷ-3 FAs. The affinities DM-GTL with designed substrates were evaluated in silico. Both, CM-GTL and DM-GTL have shown excellent ability to discriminate against the ɷ-3 FAs during hydrolysis of oils. Engineering the binding pocket of an enzyme of a complex substrate, such as a triglyceride, by incorporating the information on substrate structure and computationally derived binding modes, has resulted in designing two efficient lipase variants with improved substrate selectivity.

Lipase-catalyzed esterification of glycerol with n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids from winterized fish oil Esterificación catalítica de glicerol con ácidos grasos 3-n poliinsaturados de aceite de pescado

Menhaden oil was hydrolyzed using a lipase from Pseudomonas sp. The hydrolysate was cold frac tionated at-72°C. Glyceride synthesis was performed using the same lipase under different reaction environments. The best conditions for the esterification reaction were 39 °C for 18 h in a reaction mixture containing anhydrous glycerol, n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) enriched solution (2% lipids in hexane), hexane, and phosphate buffer-lipase solution (1% w/v). Product composition was 81.33% triacylglycerides and 18.67% of free fatty acids (w/w). Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) accounted for 36.18% of the esterified fatty acids, of which 58% was EPA and 42% was DHA. This method offers an alternative to produce glycerides rich in n-3 PUFA.

Revision: Extracción con CO2 a alta presión. Fundamentos y aplicaciones en la industria de alimentos / Review: High pressure CO2 extraction. Fundamentals and applications in the food industry

Supercritical extraction (SFE) is a unit operation that exploits the dissolving power of supercritical fluids (SF) under conditions above their critical temperature and pressure. It is possible to obtain solvent-free extracts using SF and the extraction is faster than using conventional organic solvents. These advantages are due to the high volatility of SF (gases under normal environmental conditions) and improved transport properties (i.e., high diffusivity and low viscosity). When using carbon diox ide (CO,) in particular, moderate-temperature processing and high selectivity towards valuable microconstituents in natural products can be achieved. This article presents a review of transport properties and solubilities in SF, particularly CO2, as well as other underlying factors that are respon sible for the kinetics and phase equilibrium in SFE processes. It also describes the selective CO 2 ex traction of essential oils, pungent principles, carotenoid pigments, antioxidants, antimicrobials, and related substances to be used as ingredients for the food, drug and perfume industries, from spices, herbs and other plant materials. These very important applications are discussed from the point of view of the potential applications of SFE in Latin America. The two most important commercial ap plications of SFE in the food industry, namely hop extraction and coffee decaffeination, are reviewed to a limited extent. Some other potential applications briefly described include extraction and frac tionation of edible fats and oils, purification of solid matrices, and concentration of fermentation broths, fruit juices and other extracts. In most cases CO2 extracts are compared with counterparts obtained using conventional methods.

Studies on purification of allicin by molecular distillation

BACKGROUND

With recent improvements in living standards, people have been giving more consideration to the healthcare effects of foods. In this respect, allicin, which is the most important organosulfur compound in garlic and plays a key role in physiological function, has been receiving much attention.

RESULTS

Allicin obtained from garlic by supercritical CO(2) extraction was purified by molecular distillation (MD). The effects of operating conditions such as absolute pressure (AP), distillation temperature (DT) and feed flow rate (FFR) on allicin purity and yield were studied. The optimal AP, DT and FFR levels in first-stage MD were found to be 200 Pa, 50 °C and 15 mL min(-1) respectively. After three stages of MD the contents of allicin, diallyl disulfide (DADS) and diallyl trisulfide (DATS) were 68.04, 9.19 and 5.91% (w/w) respectively.

CONCLUSION

This study has provided a safe and effective method for the purification of allicin.

Enzymatic hydrolysis of anchovy oil: production of glycerides enriched in polyunsaturated fatty acids

In an attempt to produce the polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)-enriched glycerides, commercially available Turkish anchovy oil (PUFA content of 27%), was hydrolyzed with 1,3-specific Rhizomucor miehei lipase. After the hydrolysis, the triglyceride (TG), diglyceride (DG), monoglyceride (MG), and free fatty acid (FFA) composition of the reaction mixture was determined, and fatty acid components of these fractions were analyzed. R. miehei lipase released PUFA extremely slowly, resulting in their accumulation in the TG and DG fractions, especially in TG. The PUFA content in the glyceride mixture (including TG, DG, and MG) increased as hydrolysis progressed. The effects of operational parameters (pH, temperature, time, and enzyme concentration) on the extent of hydrolysis were investigated. Based on these results, optimal reaction conditions were established. At optimal conditions (pH 4.0, 35 degrees C, 3 h, and enzyme concentration of 500 U/g oil), the level of PUFA in the glyceride mixture was raised to 40%. The individual TG and DG fractions contained 45 and 30% PUFA, respectively. Less than 2% of the total PUFA was lost in the FFA fraction.