Physicochemical characteristics of phytonutrient retained red palm olein and butter-fat blends and its utilization for formulating chocolate spread

Functional wafer cream fortified with carob molasses pulp flour

Wafer cream is an important product used in many foods, especially confectionery products, and consumed with delight. Therefore, nutritional enrichment of this product is of great importance. In this study, a new functional product was developed by adding carob molasses pulp (CMP) flour obtained from carob fruit, which has unique nutritional and bioactive properties, to wafer cream, increasing its nutritional value and antioxidant activity. When 15% CMP flour was added to the wafer cream formulation, there was an increase of approximately 58.43 and 78.77%, respectively, in total polyphenol and antioxidant levels compared to the control group (without CMP flour). In addition, since the product developed is in cocoa colour, consumer preference has increased. It has been determined that phytochemical and nutritive components of the wafer cream increased as a result of the use of carob flour.

Antioxidant Potential of Red Palm-Pressed Mesocarp Olein

Oxidative stress occurs due to the imbalance amount of the free radicals and antioxidants in human body which often associated with numerous chronic diseases. The antioxidant properties of red palm-pressed mesocarp olein (PPMO) have not been widely studied. Therefore, antioxidant properties of PPMO relative to commercially available edible oils, namely red palm olein (RPO), palm olein (PO), extra virgin olive oil (OO) and extra virgin coconut oil (CNO) were studied. PPMO exhibited significant higher phytonutrients which more than 2-fold compared to the edible oils. Overall, antioxidant screening indicated that PPMO has significantly higher antioxidant activities than RPO, PO and CNO in term of DPPH, H₂O₂, NO scavenging and FIC; and significantly higher H₂O₂ and FIC than OO. The outcomes of this study reveal that PPMO is as good as commercially available edible oil, also a good source for food applications and dietary nutritional supplements. More importantly, the utilization of PPMO could mitigate oil palm waste problem and results in positive environmental impact.

Red Palm Oil: A Review on Processing, Health Benefits and Its Application in Food

This review is aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of the physicochemical properties and extraction processes of red palm oil, its nutritional properties and applications in food. Crude palm oil is firstly extracted from the fruit mesocarp and processed into red palm oil using pre-treatment of crude palm oil, with deacidification steps, and deodorization via short-path distillation. These processes help to retain β-carotene and vitamin E in red palm oil. Palmitic, stearic and myristic acids are the saturated fatty acids in red palm oil, while the unsaturated fatty acids are oleic, linoleic and linolenic acids. It is reported to overcome vitamin A deficiency, promote heart health and have anti-cancer properties.

Corn Bioethanol Side Streams: A Potential Sustainable Source of Fat-Soluble Bioactive Molecules for High-Value Applications

This paper reports data from a characterization study conducted on the unsaponifiable lipid fraction of dry-grind corn bioethanol side streams. Phytosterols, squalene, tocopherols, tocotrienols, and carotenoids were quantified by High Performance Liquid Chromatography with Diode-Array Detector (HPLC-DAD) and Liquid Chromatography-tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) in different lots of post-fermentation corn oil and thin stillage collected from a bioethanol plant over a time-span of one year. Fat-soluble bioactives were present at high levels in corn oil, with a prevalence of plant sterols over tocols and squalene. Beta-sitosterol and sitostanol accounted altogether for more than 60% of total sterols. The carotenoid profile was that typical of corn, with lutein and zeaxanthin as the prevalent molecules. The unsaponifiable lipid fraction profile of thin stillage was qualitatively similar to that of post-fermentation corn oil but, in quantitative terms, the amounts of valuable biomolecules were much lower because of the very high dilution of this side stream. Results indicate that post-fermentation corn oil is a promising and sustainable source of health-promoting bioactive molecules. The concomitant presence of a variegate complex of bioactive molecules with high antioxidant potentialities and their potential multifaceted market applications as functional ingredients for food, nutraceutical, and cosmeceutical formulations, make the perspective of their recovery a promising strategy to create new bio-based value chains and maximize the sustainability of corn dry-grind bioethanol biorefineries.

Physicochemical characterization and nutraceutical compounds of the selected spice fixed oils

Spices and herbs are well appreciated for their medicinal properties since ancient times. Till date, spices are being explored for volatile oils (essential), flavour and for addressing many chronic diseases. In the present study, we investigated the physicochemical properties, fatty acid composition, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), elemental composition and nutraceutical compounds of fixed oils (non-volatile) from five selected spices viz., Alpinia galanga, Cinnamomum zeylanicum, Trigonella foenum-graecum, Foeniculum vulgare, and Myristica fragrans. The fixed oil (FO) content of volatiles-free powders of the five selected spices ranged from 1.58% (C. zeylanicum) to 26.43% (M. fragrans). The studied FO showed a good quality index which was analysed by estimation of free fatty acids, iodine value and unsaponifiable matter. The fatty acid analysis showed high palmitic acid in the FO of A. galanga and C. zeylanicum. High linoleic, oleic, and myristic acid levels were observed in T. foenum-graecum, F. vulgare and M. fragrans FOs, respectively. The nutraceutical compounds such as total phenolics were high in C. zeylanicum FO (0.53%). Hence the studied FO could be an excellent alternative to oil nutraceutical compounds. It may be used as a functional ingredient in foods which needs further validation for value addition.

Lipidome, nutraceuticals and nutritional profiling of Pyrus pashia Buch.-ham ex D. Don (Kainth) seeds oil and its antioxidant potential

Kainth fruit, as traditional medicine, has been used in the Himalayan region for its health-promoting properties. However, the phytochemicals and lipidomes of Kainth Seed Oil (KSO) are still scarce. Here, we investigated the physicochemical characterization of KSO and its nutraceuticals, antioxidant potentials. Kainth seeds contain 19-20% oil rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA, 82.22%), particularly linoleic acid (C18:2). Lipidome analysis of KSO using high-resolution mass spectrometry showed that trilinoleate (C54:6) was the dominant triacylglycerol (TAG) species. Further, the characteristics of PUFA-rich oil were validated by Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and Differential Scanning calorimetry (DSC). The nutraceuticals profiling of KSO depicted the presence of tocopherols (86.72 mg) and phytosterols (32.25 mg) in 100 g oil with significant antioxidant activity. The oil cake contained 19.09% protein and minerals and can be a source for dietary protein. Collectively these results suggest that KSO will be a suitable source for PUFA and nutraceuticals potential.