Synthesis of polyunsaturated fatty acid-enriched triglycerides by lipase-catalyzed esterification

Effect of Structured Phenolic Lipids with EPA/DHA and Gallic Acid against Metabolic-Associated Fatty Liver Disease (MAFLD) in Mice

Obesity is the leading risk factor for developing metabolic (dysfunction)-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). The food industry has an essential role in searching for new strategies to improve primary food sources to revert some of the metabolic alterations induced by obesity. There is consistent evidence that long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LCPUFA) belonging to the n-3 series, i.e., eicosapentaenoic (20:5n-3, EPA) and docosahexaenoic (22:6n-3, DHA) acids, could revert some alterations associated with obesity-induced metabolic diseases. A relevant tool is the synthesis of structured acylglycerols (sAG), which include EPA or DHA at the sn-2 position. On the other hand, it has been reported that a crucial role of antioxidants is the reversion of MAFLD. In this work, we studied the effects of new molecules incorporating gallic acid (GA) into EPA/DHA-rich structured lipids. Mice were fed with a high-fat diet (60%) for three months and were then divided into five groups for supplementation with sAG and sAG structured with gallic acid (structured phenolic acylglycerols, sPAG). sPAG synthesis was optimized using a 2²-screening factorial design based on the response surface methodology (RSM). Our results show that treatment of sPAG was effective in decreasing visceral fat, fasting glycemia, fasting insulin, suggesting that this new molecule has a potential use in the reversal of MAFLD-associated alterations.

Synthesis of EPA- and DHA-Enriched Structured Acylglycerols at the sn-2 Position Starting from Commercial Salmon Oil by Enzymatic Lipase Catalysis under Supercritical Conditions

There is consistent evidence that long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA) belonging to the n-3 series, i.e., eicosapentaenoic (20:5n-3, EPA) and docosahexaenoic (22:6n-3, DHA) acids, decrease the risk of heart, circulatory and inflammatory diseases. Furthermore, the bioavailability of such fatty acids has been shown to depend on their location in triacylglycerol (TG) molecules at the sn-2 position. Consequently, great attention has been accorded to the synthesis of structured acylglycerols (sAG), which include EPA or DHA at the sn-2 position. The aim of this work was to synthesize sAG starting from deodorized refined commercial salmon oil. For this, immobilized lipase B from Candida antarctica (nonspecific) was used as a catalyst for the intra–interesterification process under CO₂ supercritical conditions (CO₂SC). According to the CO₂SC reaction time, three different fractions including sAG compounds were obtained. The location of EPA and DHA at the sn-2 position in the resulting glycerol backbone was identified by mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF) analysis. In all fractions obtained, a marked decrease in the starting TG content was observed, while an increase in the DHA content at the sn-2 position was detected. The fraction obtained after the longest reaction time period (2 h) led to the highest yield of sn-2 position DHA in the resulting sAG molecule.

Identification of an alkaline lipase capable of better enrichment of EPA than DHA due to fatty acids selectivity and regioselectivity

The whole genome of Streptomyces violascens (=ATCC 27968) was sequenced and the cloning and expression of OUC-Lipase 6 were conducted in Bacillus subtilis WB800. The recombinant enzyme belongs to the lipolytic enzymes family V. OUC-Lipase 6 showed optimal activity at 30 °C and pH 9.0, and retained 90.2% of its activity in an alkaline buffer (pH 8.0, 30 °C and 96 h). OUC-Lipase 6 showed good stability under medium temperature conditions (residual activity of 68.8%, pH 8.0, 45 °C and 96 h). OUC-Lipase 6 could selectively hydrolyze fatty acids on the glyceride backbone, thus improving the contents of DHA and EPA in codfish oil. OUC-Lipase 6 also showed regioselectivity, resulting in a better enrichment efficiency for EPA than DHA. After hydrolyzing for 36 h via OUC-Lipase 6, the contents of EPA and DHA were improved to 3.24-fold and 1.98-fold, respectively.

An Efficient Synthesis of Lysophosphatidylcholine Enriched with n-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids by Immobilized MAS1 Lipase

n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)-rich lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) with many beneficial effects was effectively synthesized by immobilized MAS1 lipase-catalyzed esterification of n-3 PUFA with sn-glycero-3-phosphatidylcholine (GPC) under vacuum in a solvent-free system. Immobilized MAS1 lipase was found to be a more suitable catalyst for the production of n-3 PUFA-rich LPC when compared with Novozym 435. The maximal GPC conversion and LPC content (93.12% and 90.77 mol %) were obtained under the optimized conditions (enzyme loading of 300 U/g substrate, temperature of 55 °C, and n-3 PUFA/GPC molar ratio of 20:1). Moreover, it was observed that 1-acyl-sn-glycero-3-lysophosphatidylcholine (sn-1 acyl LPC) was the main reaction product, as demonstrated by molecular docking. These results showed that immobilized MAS1 lipase had high phospholipase activity with a predominant specificity for the sn-1 hydroxyl position of GPC to efficiently synthesize highly pure n-3 PUFA-rich LPC from GPC for industrial application.

Preparation of High-Purity Trilinolein and Triolein by Enzymatic Esterification Reaction Combined with Column Chromatography

High-purity trilinolein and triolein were prepared by Novozym 435-catalyzed esterification reaction combined with column chromatography purification in this study. Firstly, linoleic acid and oleic acid were respectively extracted from safflower seed oil and camellia seed oil by urea adduct method. Secondly, trilinolein and triolein were synthesized through Novozym 435 catalyzed esterification of glycerol and fatty acids. The best synthesis conditions were obtained as follows: reaction temperature 100°C, residual pressure 0.9 kPa, enzyme dosage 6%, molar ratio of glycerol to linoleic acid 1:3 and reaction time 8 h. Crude trilinolein and triolein were further purified by silica gel column chromatography. Finally, highpurity trilinolein (95.43±0.97%) and triolein (93.07±1.05%) were obtained.

Intensified synthesis of medium chain triglycerides using ultrasonic reactors at a capacity of 4L

Lipids are considered as one of the most crucial nutrients for humans and among the various classes, medium chain triglycerides (MCTs) are considered as the most important functional foods and nutraceuticals. The present work deals with the intensification of synthesis of MCTs at a large capacity of 4L based on the use of ultrasonic bath and ultrasonic longitudinal horn. The effect of operating parameters like molar ratio of the reactants, type of catalyst and catalyst loading as well as the temperature on the extent of conversion has been investigated. The effect of molar ratio of lauric acid and glycerol was investigated over the range of 1:2 to 1:8 whereas the effect of loading of sulfuric acid was studied over the range of 4 ml/L-10 ml/L and zinc chloride loading over the range of 1 g/L-4 g/L. The effect of temperature was also studied using the conventional approach where it has been observed that 90 °C is an optimum temperature giving the extent of conversion as 72%. Also, the use of homogeneous catalyst as sulphuric acid was found to be more effective as compared to the solid catalyst as zinc chloride. It was observed that the maximum extent of conversion as 77.5% was obtained at 8 ml/L of sulfuric acid and molar ratio of 1:6 using ultrasonic longitudinal horn with US bath giving lower conversion as compared to US longitudinal horn but higher than the conventional approach under same operating conditions. The present work clearly established the intensification benefits in terms of reduction in time and higher conversion using cavitational reactors.

A Novel Process for the Synthesis of Highly Pure n-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid (PUFA)-Enriched Triglycerides by Combined Transesterification and Ethanolysis

In this study, a novel two-step enzymatic reaction was developed for the synthesis of highly pure triacylglycerols (TAGs) with a high content of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Glyceride mixtures were primarily synthesized by Novozym 435-catalyzed transesterification of glycerol and DHA/EPA-rich ethyl esters (EEs), followed by removal of partial glycerides, for the first time, by immobilized mono- and diacylglycerol lipase SMG1-F278N-catalyzed ethanolysis. TAG yield as high as 98.66% was achieved under the optimized conditions, and highly pure (98.75%) n-3 PUFA-enriched TAGs with 88.44% of n-3 PUFA was obtained after molecular distillation at lower temperature (140 °C). In addition, the EEs produced during ethanolysis had a FA composition similar to that of the original EEs, making them feasible for cyclic utilization. This was the first study reporting removal of partial glycerides by ethanolysis. Through ethanolysis, a higher purity product could be easily obtained at a relatively low temperature compared with the conventional high-temperature molecular distillation.

Ultrasound assisted enzymatic conversion of non edible oil to methyl esters

Conventional and ultrasound-assisted hydrolysis and subsequent esterification of Nagchampa oil under mild operating conditions have been investigated with an objective of intensification of methyl esters production using a sustainable approach. The effect of ratio of reactants, temperature, enzyme loading, pretreatment of enzyme (using ultrasonic irradiations) on the hydrolysis and esterification reaction has been studied. Optimum conditions for hydrolysis were observed to be 1:1 weight ratio of oil: water for Lip Z and 1:3 for Lip 2 enzymes, enzyme loading of 400 units for Lip Z and 800 mg for Lip 2 enzymes and reaction time of 6h. In the case of esterification reaction, optimum conditions obtained were oil to methanol molar ratio of 1:2, enzyme loading of 1000 mg and reaction time of 20 h. Use of pretreated enzyme (using ultrasonic irradiations) was found to increase the extent of esterification reaction from 75% to 92.5%. It was observed that use of ultrasound in the reaction significantly intensified the esterification reaction with time requirement reducing from 20 h for conventional stirring based approach to only about 7.5 h in the presence of ultrasound. The extent of esterification obtained with sonicated enzyme also increased to 96% from 75% with unsonicated enzyme.

Plant products for pharmacology: application of enzymes in their transformations

Different plant products have been subjected to detailed investigations due to their increasing importance for improving human health. Plants are sources of many groups of natural products, of which large number of new compounds has already displayed their high impact in human medicine. This review deals with the natural products which may be found dissolved in lipid phase (phytosterols, vitamins etc.). Often subsequent convenient transformation of natural products may further improve the pharmacological properties of new potential medicaments based on natural products. To respect basic principles of sustainable and green procedures, enzymes are often employed as efficient natural catalysts in such plant product transformations. Transformations of lipids and other natural products under the conditions of enzyme catalysis show increasing importance in environmentally safe and sustainable production of pharmacologically important compounds. In this review, attention is focused on lipases, efficient and convenient biocatalysts for the enantio- and regioselective formation / hydrolysis of ester bond in a wide variety of both natural and unnatural substrates, including plant products, eg. plant oils and other natural lipid phase compounds. The application of enzymes for preparation of acylglycerols and transformation of other natural products provides big advantage in comparison with employing of conventional chemical methods: Increased selectivity, higher product purity and quality, energy conservation, elimination of heavy metal catalysts, and sustainability of the employed processes, which are catalyzed by enzymes. Two general procedures are used in the transformation of lipid-like natural products: (a) Hydrolysis/alcoholysis of triacylglycerols and (b) esterification of glycerol. The reactions can be performed under conventional conditions or in supercritical fluids/ionic liquids. Enzyme-catalyzed reactions in supercritical fluids combine the advantages of biocatalysts (substrate specificity under mild reaction conditions) and supercritical fluids (high mass-transfer rate, easy separation of reaction products from the solvent, environmental benefits based on excluding organic solvents from the production process).

Proteolytic extraction of salmon oil and PUFA concentration by lipases

Commercial proteases (Alcalase, Neutrase, and Flavourzyme) were tested for their ability to release the oil content of marine by-products (salmon heads). The amount of oil (17%) obtained after 2 hours was close to that obtained by the chemical extraction method (20%). Lipolysis of the oil was carried out with Novozym SP398 to obtain a mixture of free fatty acids and acylglycerols (24 hours 45% hydrolysis). The mixture was filtered on a hydrophobic membrane to discriminate between high melting saturated fatty acids and low melting acylglycerols. The sum of total polyunsaturated fatty acids increased from 41.6% in the crude oil to 46.5% in the permeate. The docosahexaenoic acid content increased from 9.9% to 11.6%, and the eicosapentaenoic acid changed from 3.6% to 5.6%. Data from differential scanning calorimetry DSC and from thin layer chromatography coupled with flame ionization detection (TLC-FID) differed significantly between permeate and retentate. A re-esterification of the free fatty acids in the permeate with Lipozyme IM was carried out to increase the amount of long chain acylglycerols.

Zeolite molecular sieves have dramatic acid-base effects on enzymes in nonaqueous media

Zeolite molecular sieves very commonly are used as in situ drying agents in reaction mixtures of enzymes in nonaqueous media. They often affect enzyme behavior, and this has been interpreted in terms of altered hydration. Here, we show that zeolites can also have dramatic acid-base effects on enzymes in low water media, resulting from their cation-exchange ability. Initial rates of transesterification catalyzed by cross-linked crystals of subtilisin were compared in supercritical ethane, hexane, and acetonitrile with water activity fixed by pre-equilibration. Addition of zeolite NaA (4 A powder) still caused remarkable rate enhancements (up to 20-fold), despite the separate control of hydration. In the presence of excess of an alternative solid-state acid-base buffer, however, zeolite addition had no effect. The more commonly used Merck molecular sieves (type 3 A beads) had similar but somewhat smaller effects. All zeolites have ion-exchange ability and can exchange H+ for cations such as Na+ and K+. These exchanges will tend to affect the protonation state of acidic groups in the protein and, hence, enzymatic activity. Zeolites pre-equilibrated in aqueous suspensions of varying pH-pNa gave very different enzyme activities. Their differing basicities were demonstrated directly by equilibration with an indicator dissolved in toluene. The potential of zeolites as acid-base buffers for low-water media is discussed, and their ability to overcome pH memory is demonstrated.