A validated, rapid, simple and economical high-performance liquid-chromatography method to quantify palm tocopherol and tocotrienols

Supercritical fluid chromatography with post-column addition of supporting electrolyte solution for electrochemical determination of tocopherol and tocotrienol isomers

A supercritical fluid chromatography with electrochemical detection system was developed for the simultaneous determination of tocopherol and tocotrienol isomers. The supercritical fluid chromatography with electrochemical detection system was connected with an additional pump to create a flow path to add a supporting electrolyte solution. The supporting electrolyte solution was mixed with a mobile phase in a post-column fashion, enabling the independent control of the separation and detection. After optimization of the measurement conditions, vitamin E isomers and an internal standard substance (2,2,5,7,8-pentamethyl-6-hydroxychroman) were separated within 30 min using a mixture of supercritical carbon dioxide and methanol (99:1, v/v) as a mobile phase and a cyanopropyl column (4.6 mm inner diameter × 250 mm length, 5 μm). For the electrochemical detection, methanol containing 1.0 mol/L ammonium acetate was used as a supporting electrolyte solution and the applied potential was set at +0.8 V. This analytical method showed good linearity (5 to 100 μg/mL) and repeatability (less than 2.5% relative standard deviation (n = 6)) and was applicable to the determination of tocopherol and tocotrienol isomers in nutrition supplements. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Pilot scale production of functional foods using red palm olein: Antioxidant, vitamins' stability and sensory quality during storage

The objective of this research work was to produce acceptable quality functional foods, namely, extruded snacks, digestive biscuits and pan bread, on a pilot scale, using vitamin E and β-carotene-rich red palm olein (RPOL) and red palm shortening (RPS). These products were evaluated for their chemical composition and sensory quality along with the antioxidants and vitamin contents during the six months of storage at room temperature (22 ± 1 °C). Extruded snacks and digestive biscuits prepared with RPOL and RPS were found to be good sources of these antioxidant vitamins. The average β-carotene content of the control and test snacks at the end of six months of storage ranged from 26.8 to 56.1 mg/kg fat, and from 430.9 to 468.9 mg/kg fat, respectively. The total vitamin E content in control and test snacks made in Plant No. 1 decreased after six months of storage from 786.1 to 704.4 mg/kg fat, and from 765.1 to 695.4 mg/kg fat, respectively. As expected, the total tocotrienol content was four to five times higher than the total tocopherols in control biscuits. The RPOL containing 600–750 ppm of carotenes (mainly α- and β-carotenes), 710–774 ppm of vitamin E, was found to be suitable for industrial application in producing acceptable quality pan bread, digestive biscuits and snacks. These functional foods contained significant amounts of β-carotene and total vitamin E, indicating the possibility of producing such foods rich in these two of the important antioxidant vitamins coming from a natural source. The research findings strongly indicate that good-quality pan bread, extruded snacks and digestive biscuits can successfully be produced to offer healthier eating choices to the consumers of this region, thereby promoting better health and productivity among the population.

Pressurized liquid extraction to obtain chia seeds oils extracts enriched in tocochromanols. Nanoemulsions approaches to preserve the antioxidant potential

The objective of this study was to use accelerated-solvent-extraction to achieve antioxidant extracts from chia seeds oils, enriched in tocopherols and tocotrienols, namely tocochromanols. Nanotechnology applications have been also incorporated to develop an innovative formulation of chia seeds oil nanoemulsion that preserve its antioxidant potential after conditions of oxidative stress. Chia seeds oils proved to be a valuable source of tocochromanols, from 568.84 to 855.98 μg g^-1, depending on the geographical provenance. Quantitative data obtained by LC-DAD-ESI-MS/MS showed outstanding levels of γ-Tocopherol, over 83%, followed far behind by Tocopherols-(α, β, δ) and Tocotrienols-(α, β, δ, γ)-tocotrienols. The characteristic tocochromanols fingerprint of chia seeds oils was positively correlated with the FRAP and DPPH antioxidant activity of the extracts (between 18.81 and 138.48 mg Trolox/g). Formulation of the Chia seeds oils as nanoemulsions did not compromised the antioxidant properties of fresh extracts. Interestingly, nanoemulsions retained about the 80% of the initial antioxidant capacity after UV-induced stress, where the non-emulsified oils displayed a remarkable reduction (50-60%) on its antioxidant capacity under the same conditions. These antioxidant chia seeds formulations can constitute a promising strategy to vectorizing vitamin E isomers, in order to be used for food fortification, natural additives and to increase the self-life of food products during packing.

Assessing the Impact of Oil Types and Grades on Tocopherol and Tocotrienol Contents in Vegetable Oils with Chemometric Methods

The consumption of vegetable oil is an important way for the body to obtain tocols. However, the impact of oil types and grades on the tocopherol and tocotrienol contents in vegetable oils is unclear. In this study, nine types of traditional edible oils and ten types of self-produced new types of vegetable oil were used to analyze eight kinds of tocols. The results showed that the oil types exerted a great impact on the tocol content of traditional edible oils. Soybean oils, corn oils, and rapeseed oils all could be well distinguished from sunflower oils. Both sunflower oils and cotton seed oils showed major differences from camellia oils as well as sesame oils. Among them, rice bran oils contained the most abundant types of tocols. New types of oil, especially sacha inchi oil, have provided a new approach to obtaining oils with a high tocol content. Oil refinement leads to the loss of tocols in vegetable oil, and the degree of oil refinement determines the oil grade. However, the oil grade could not imply the final tocol content in oil from market. This study could be beneficial for the oil industry and dietary nutrition.

Development and Analytical Validation of the Methodology for Vitamins in Tablets by Ultra-Performance Liquid Chromatography

In the present study, we developed a reliable and robust chromatographic method for the quantification of multivitamins in tablet samples by ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) with photodiode array detection. The vitamins nicotinamide, pyridoxine, riboflavin, and thiamin were analyzed and quantified in a total analysis time of 2.5 minutes, using hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography stationary phase. Tocopherol acetate and cyanocobalamin were analyzed and quantified in a total analysis time of 2.5 minutes, using reversed-phase (RP)-UPLC. The analysis time reported here is lower than that of similar methods reported in the literature for single vitamin determination. The method linearity exhibits a good correlation coefficient (R2 = 0.998) with the relative residual standard deviation in the acceptable limit of 2.0%. The developed methods were validated, and the results demonstrated that the proposed analytical method showed to be selective, sensitive, accurate, and robust for the quantification of evaluated vitamins in multivitamin tablets. The work was fully developed in the quality control laboratory of a pharmaceutical industry in the Agroindustrial District of Anápolis (DAIA, Goiás, Brazil), where the product is manufactured.

An evaluation of crude palm oil (CPO) and tocotrienol rich fraction (TRF) of palm oil as percutaneous permeation enhancers using full-thickness human skin

The drawbacks associated with chemical skin permeation enhancers such as skin irritation and toxicity necessitated the research to focus on potential permeation enhancers with a perceived lower toxicity. Crude palm oil (CPO) is obtained by direct compression of the mesocarp of the fruit of the oil palm belonging to the genus Elaeis. In this research, CPO and tocotrienol-rich fraction (TRF) of palm oil were evaluated for the first time as skin permeation enhancers using full-thickness human skin. The in vitro permeation experiments were conducted using excised human skin mounted in static upright 'Franz-type' diffusion cells. The drugs selected to evaluate the enhancing effects of these palm oil derivatives were 5-fluorouracil, lidocaine and ibuprofen: compounds covering a wide range of Log p values. It was demonstrated that CPO and TRF were capable of enhancing the percutaneous permeation of drugs across full-thickness human skin in vitro. Both TRF and CPO were shown to significantly enhance the permeation of ibuprofen with flux values of 30.6 µg/cm² h and 23.0 µg/cm² h respectively, compared to the control with a flux of 16.2 µg/cm² h. The outcome of this research opens further scope for investigation on the transdermal penetration enhancement activity of pure compounds derived from palm oil.

Chemical Composition of Date Palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) Seed Oil from Six Saudi Arabian Cultivars

This investigation aimed to evaluate the chemical composition and physicochemical properties of seed oils from 6 date palm (Phoenix. dactylifera L.) cultivars (Barhi, Khalas, Manifi, Rezeiz, Sulaj, and Sukkari) growing in Saudi Arabia and to compare them with conventional palm olein. The mean oil content of the seeds was about 7%. Oleic acid (48.67%) was the main fatty acid, followed by lauric acid (17.26%), stearic acid (10.74%), palmitic acid (9.88%), and linolenic acid (8.13%). The mean value for free fatty acids content was 0.5%. The P. dactylifera seed oil also exhibited a mean tocol content of 70.75 mg/100 g. α-Tocotrienol was the most abundant isomer (30.19%), followed by γ-tocopherol (23.61%), γ-tocotrienol (19.07%), and α-tocopherol (17.52%). The oils showed high thermal and oxidative stabilities. The findings indicate that date seed oil has the potential to be used in the food industry as an abundant alternative to palm olein.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

This study showed that date seed had great nutritional value due to which it can be used for food applications especially as frying or cooking oil. In addition, date oil has also potential to be used in cosmetic and pharmaceutical practices as well. The extraction of oil from Phoenix dactylifera seed on large scale can create positive socioeconomic benefits especially for rural communities and could also assist to resolve the environmental issues generated by excess date production in large scale date-producing countries such as Saudi Arabia.

Comparison of Chemical Profile and Antioxidant Capacity of Seeds and Oils from Salvia sclarea and Salvia officinalis

Composition of tocopherols, tocotrienols, carotenoids, fatty acids, as well as hydrophilic and lipophilic antioxidant activities, were determined in seeds of two Salvia species and oils obtained from them. Both seeds contained a large amount of oil (around 20%) rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids. While Salvia officinalis seed oil can be classified as oleic-linoleic oil, the predominant fatty acid in Salvia sclarea was α-linolenic acid (around 54%). Among tocols, the main isomers in both seeds and oils were γ-tocopherol, followed by α-tocopherol. Concerning carotenoids, their concentration was around 0.75 mg/100 g of seeds and 0.16 mg/100 g of oils, with a predominance of lutein. Oil and seeds of S. officinalis exhibited higher antioxidant potential compared to S. sclarea investigated samples which could be attributed to higher content of total vitamin E and carotenoids. This study provides results that enables use of two Salvia species as new alternative sources of vegetable oils.

Semi-preparative HPLC purification of δ-tocotrienol (δ-T3) from Elaeis guineensis Jacq. and Bixa orellana L. and evaluation of its in vitro anticancer activity in human A375 melanoma cells

In this work, we report a rapid and convenient HPLC-UV-DAD method for the isolation of δ-T3 on semi-preparative scale from two different vitamin E rich processed, commercially available products obtained from the fruits of Elaeis guineensis Jacq. (oil palm) and from the seeds of Bixa orellana L. (achiote tree). Chromatography was run using reverse phase (RP) C-18 columns and HPLC-grade acetonitrile as mobile phase. The purity of the isolated δ-T3, assessed by GC-MS and ¹H NMR was above 98%. The δ-T3 cytotoxic activity found in vitro against the proliferation of human A375 melanoma cells compared to that of the other δ-T3 free tocols mixture suggest its primary role in the experimental anticancer activity observed for palm oil derived products. Taken altogether, the results of this study highlight the importance of the application of suitable purification systems for the preparations of tocotrienols prior to their experimental or clinical testing.