High resolution 1H nuclear magnetic resonance in the study of edible oils and fats

Analytical approaches for the determination of adulterated animal fats and vegetable oils in food and non-food samples

Edible oils and fats are crucial components of everyday cooking and the production of food products, but their purity has been a major issue for a long time. High-quality edible oils are contaminated with low- and cheap-quality edible oils to increase profits. The adulteration of edible oils and fats also produces many health risks. Detection of main and minor components can identify adulterations using various techniques, such as GC, HPLC, TLC, FTIR, NIR, NMR, direct mass spectrometry, PCR, E-Nose, and DSC. Each detection technique has its advantages and disadvantages. For example, chromatography offers high precision but requires extensive sample preparation, while spectroscopy is rapid and non-destructive but may lack resolution. Direct mass spectrometry is faster and simpler than chromatography-based MS, eliminating complex preparation steps. DNA-based oil authentication is effective but hindered by laborious extraction processes. E-Nose only distinguishes odours, and DSC directly studies lipid thermal properties without derivatization or solvents. Mass spectrometry-based techniques, particularly GC-MS is found to be highly effective for detecting adulteration of oils and fats in food and non-food samples. This review summarizes the benefits and drawbacks of these analytical approaches and their use in conjunction with chemometric tools to detect the adulteration of animal fats and vegetable oils. This combination provides a powerful technique with enormous chemotaxonomic potential that includes the detection of adulterations, quality assurance, assessment of geographical origin, assessment of the process, and classification of the product in complex matrices from food and non-food samples.

Use of egg yolk phospholipids to improve the thermal-oxidative stability of fatty acids, capsaicinoids and carotenoids in chili oil

Phospholipids can act as antioxidants in food. In this study, egg yolk phospholipids (EPL) and sunflower oil were utilized in making chili oil, and proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy was employed to quantify the concentrations of fatty acyl groups, carotenoids, capsaicinoids in chili oil according to their specific signals in the spectra. The results showed that the changes in the concentrations of fatty acyl groups in the control samples were greater than those in the EPL-treated samples at the same frying temperature, while the contents of carotenoids and capsaicinoids were significantly lower than those of the EPL-treated samples when fried at 150 °C (p < 0.05). Two-way ANOVA indicated that frying temperature and EPL treatment, as well as their interaction had significant impacts on the thermal-oxidative stability of chili oil (p < 0.05). The results suggest that EPL may act as antioxidants during frying, and EPL can improve the thermal-oxidative stability of chili oil.

NMR Fingerprinting of Conventional and Genetically Modified Soybean Plants with AtAREB1 Transcription Factors

Drought stress impacts soybean yields and physiological processes. However, the insertion of the activated form of the AtAREB1 gene in the soybean cultivar BR16, which is sensitive to water deficit, improved the drought response of the genetically modified plants. Thus, in this study, we used 1H NMR in solution and solid-state NMR to investigate the response of genetically modified soybean overexpressing AtAREB1 under water deficiency conditions. We achieved that drought-tolerant soybean yields high content of amino acids isoleucine, leucine, threonine, valine, proline, glutamate, aspartate, asparagine, tyrosine, and phenylalanine after 12 days of drought stress conditions, as compared to drought-sensitive soybean under the same conditions. Specific target compounds, including sugars, organic acids, and phenolic compounds, were identified as involved in controlling sensitive soybean during the vegetative stage. Solid-state NMR was used to study the impact of drought stress on starch and cellulose contents in different soybean genotypes. The findings provide insights into the metabolic adjustments of soybean overexpressing AREB transcription factors in adapting to dry climates. This study presents NMR techniques for investigating the metabolome of transgenic soybean plants in response to the water deficit. The approach allowed for the identification of physiological and morphological changes in drought-resistant and drought-tolerant soybean tissues. The findings indicate that drought stress significantly alters micro- and macromolecular metabolism in soybean plants. Differential responses were observed among roots and leaves as well as drought-tolerant and drought-sensitive cultivars, highlighting the complex interplay between overexpressed transcription factors and drought stress in soybean plants.

Graphical exploration of 600- and 60-MHz proton NMR spectral datasets from ground roast coffee extracts

This article uses a variety of graphical and mathematical approaches to analyse 600- and 60-MHz ('benchtop') proton NMR spectra acquired from lipophilic and hydrophilic extracts of roasted coffee beans. The collection of 40 authenticated samples comprised various coffee species, cultivars and hybrids. The spectral datasets were analysed by a combination of metabolomics approaches, cross-correlation and whole spectrum methods, assisted by visualisation and mathematical techniques not conventionally employed to treat NMR data. A large amount of information content was shared between the 600-MHz and benchtop datasets, including in its magnitude spectral form, suggesting the potential for a lower cost, lower tech route to conducting informative metabolomics studies.

Multivariate modelling analysis for prediction of glycidyl esters and 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD) formation in periodically heated palm oil

Palm oil is a vegetable oil that is widely used for cooking and deep-frying because of its affordability. However, repeatedly heated palm oil is also prone to oxidation due to its significant content of unsaturated fatty acids and other chemical toxicants such as glycidyl esters and 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD). Initially, the physicochemical properties such as colour, viscosity, peroxide, p-anisidine and total oxidation (TOTOX) of periodically heated palm oil were investigated. Chemical profiling and fingerprinting of six different brands of palm cooking oil during heating cycles between 90 and 360 min were conducted using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and 1H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) metabolomics. In addition, the multivariate analysis was employed to evaluate the 1H NMR spectroscopic pattern of repeatedly heated palm oil with the corresponding physicochemical properties. The FTIR metabolomics showed significant different of the chemical fingerprinting subjected to heating duration, which in agreement with the result of 1H NMR metabolomics. Partial least squares (PLS) model revealed that most of the physicochemical properties of periodically heated palm oil are positively correlated (R2 values of 0.98-0.99) to their spectroscopic pattern. Based on the findings, the color of the oils darkened with increased heating time. The peroxide value (PV), p-anisidine value (p-AnV), and total oxidation (TOTOX) values increased significantly due to degradation of unsaturated compounds and oxidation products formed. We identified targeted metabolites (probable carcinogens) such as 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD) and glycidyl ester (GE), indicating the conversion of 3-MCPD to GE in repeatedly heated oils based on PCA and OPLSDA models. Our correlation analysis of NMR and physicochemical properties has shown that the conversion of 3-MCPD to GE was significantly increased from 180 to 360 min cooking time. The combination spectroscopic techniques with physicochemical properties are a reliable and robust methods to evaluate the characteristics, stability and chemical's structure changes of periodically heated palm oil, which may contribute to probable carcinogens development. This study has proven that combination of NMR and physicochemical analysis may predict the formation of the probable carcinogens of heated cooking oil over time which emphasizing the need to avoid certain heating cycles to mitigate formation of probable carcinogens during cooking process.

New insight into the genetic basis of oil content based on noninvasive three-dimensional phenotyping and tissue-specific transcriptome in Brassica napus

BACKGROUND

Increasing seed oil content is the most important breeding goal in Brassica napus, and phenotyping is crucial to dissect its genetic basis in crops. To date, QTL mapping for oil content has been based on whole seeds, and the lipid distribution is far from uniform in different tissues of seeds in B. napus. In this case, the phenotype based on whole seeds was unable to sufficiently reveal the complex genetic characteristics of seed oil content.

RESULTS

Here, the three-dimensional (3D) distribution of lipid was determined for B. napus seeds by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and 3D quantitative analysis, and ten novel oil content-related traits were obtained by subdividing the seeds. Based on a high-density genetic linkage map, 35 QTLs were identified for 4 tissues, the outer cotyledon (OC), inner cotyledon (IC), radicle (R) and seed coat (SC), which explained up to 13.76% of the phenotypic variation. Notably, 14 tissue-specific QTLs were reported for the first time, 7 of which were novel. Moreover, haplotype analysis showed that the favorable alleles for different seed tissues exhibited cumulative effects on oil content. Furthermore, tissue-specific transcriptomes revealed that more active energy and pyruvate metabolism influenced carbon flow in the IC, OC and R than in the SC at the early and middle seed development stages, thus affecting the distribution difference in oil content. Combining tissue-specific QTL mapping and transcriptomics, 86 important candidate genes associated with lipid metabolism were identified that underlie 19 unique QTLs, including the fatty acid synthesis rate-limiting enzyme-related gene CAC2, in the QTLs for OC and IC.

CONCLUSIONS

The present study provides further insight into the genetic basis of seed oil content at the tissue-specific level.

Individual and Joint Effect of Alpha-Tocopherol and Hydroxytyrosol Acetate on the Oxidation of Sunflower Oil Submitted to Oxidative Conditions: A Study by Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance

This study tackles the individual and joint effect of alpha-tocopherol and hydroxytyrosol acetate on the oxidation of sunflower oil submitted to accelerated storage conditions at intermediate temperature, in order to deepen the understanding of antioxidant-prooxidant behaviour. This was accomplished by 1H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance. For this purpose, the evolution of the degradation of both the main components of the oil and the aforementioned added compounds was monitored by this technique throughout the storage time. Furthermore, the formation of a very large number of oxylipins and the evolution of their concentration up to a very advanced stage of oil oxidation, as well as the occurrence of lipolysis, were also simultaneously studied. The results obtained show very clearly and thoroughly that in the oxidation process of the oil enriched in binary mixtures, interactions occur between alpha-tocopherol and hydroxytyrosol acetate that notably reduce the antioxidant effect of the latter compound with the corresponding negative consequences that this entails. The methodology used here has proved to be very efficient to evaluate the antioxidant power of mixtures of compounds.

Alpha-Tocopherol, a Powerful Molecule, Leads to the Formation of Oxylipins in Polyunsaturated Oils Differently to the Temperature Increase: A Detailed Study by Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance of Walnut Oil Oxidation

Lipid oxidation causes food degradation and the formation of toxic compounds. Therefore, the addition to foods of compounds able to avoid, delay or minimize this degradative process is a commonly used strategy. Nevertheless, neither the identity of most of the formed compounds in this complex process nor the way in which their formation is affected by the strategy used are well known. In this context, the effect the temperature increase and the enrichment level in alpha-tocopherol on the evolution of the walnut oil oxidation, as a model of an oil rich in polyunsaturated omega-6 acyl groups, submitted to storage conditions, are tackled by 1H NMR. The study has allowed knowing the degradation kinetic of both the oil acyl groups and alpha-tocopherol, the identification of a very high number of oxylipins and the kinetic of their formation. The temperature increase accelerates the formation of all oxylipins, favouring the formation of hydroperoxy conjugated E,E-dienes and related derivatives versus that of the Z,E-isomers. The enrichment in alpha-tocopherol accelerates the formation of hydroperoxy conjugated Z,E-dienes and related derivatives, and delays in relation to the formation of the former that of the E,E-isomers and related derivatives, hindering, to a certain extent, the formation of the latter in line with the enrichment level.

Fast 1H-NMR Species Differentiation Method for Camellia Seed Oils Applied to Spanish Ornamentals Plants. Comparison with Traditional Gas Chromatography

Camellia genus (Theaceae) is comprised of world famous ornamental flowering plants. C. japonica L. and C. sasanqua Thunb are the most cultivated species due to their good adaptation. The commercial interest in this plant linked to its seed oil increased in the last few years due to its health attributes, which significantly depend on different aspects such as species and environmental conditions. Therefore, it is essential to develop fast and reliable methods to distinguish between different varieties and ensure the quality of Camellia seed oils. The present work explores the study of Camellia seed oils by species and location. Two standardized gas chromatography methods were applied and compared with that of data obtained from proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (¹H-NMR) for fatty acids profiling. The principal component analysis indicated that the proposed ¹H-NMR methodology can be quickly and reliably applied to separate specific Camellia species, which could be extended to other species in future works.

1H NMR Study of the In Vitro Digestion of Highly Oxidized Soybean Oil and the Effect of the Presence of Ovalbumin

Oxidized lipids containing a wide variety of potentially toxic compounds can be ingested through diet. However, their transformations during digestion are little known, despite this knowledge being essential in understanding their impact on human health. Considering this, the in vitro digestion process of highly oxidized soybean oil, containing compounds bearing hydroperoxy, aldehyde, epoxy, keto and hydroxy groups, among others, is studied by ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance. Lipolysis extent, oxidation occurrence and the fate of oxidation products both present in the undigested oil and formed during digestion are analyzed. Furthermore, the effect during digestion of two different ovalbumin proportions on all the aforementioned issues is also addressed. It is proved that polyunsaturated group bioaccessibility is affected by both a decrease in lipolysis and oxidation occurrence during digestion. While hydroperoxide level declines throughout this process, epoxy-compounds, keto-dienes, hydroxy-compounds, furan-derivatives and n-alkanals persist to a great extent or even increase. Conversely, α,β-unsaturated aldehydes, especially the very reactive and toxic oxygenated ones, diminish, although part of them remains in the digestates. While a low ovalbumin proportion hardly affects oil evolution during digestion, at a high level it diminishes oxidation and reduces the concentration of potentially bioaccessible toxic oxidation compounds.

A Quantitative 1H NMR Method for Screening Cannabinoids in CBD Oils

Toxicologically relevant levels of the psychoactive ∆9-tetrahydocannabinol (∆9-THC) as well as high levels of non-psychoactive cannabinoids potentially occur in CBD (cannabidiol) oils. For consumer protection in the fast-growing CBD oil market, facile and rapid quantitative methods to determine the cannabinoid content are crucial. However, the current standard method, i.e., liquid chromatography combined with tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS), requires a time-consuming multistep sample preparation. In this study, a quantitative nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (qNMR) method for screening cannabinoids in CBD oils was developed. Contrary to the HPLC-MS/MS method, this qNMR features a simple sample preparation, i.e., only diluting the CBD oil in deuterochloroform. Pulse length-based concentration determination (PULCON) enables a direct quantification using an external standard. The signal intensities of the cannabinoids were enhanced during the NMR spectra acquisition by means of multiple suppression of the triglycerides which are a major component of the CBD oil matrix. The validation confirmed linearity for CBD, cannabinol (CBN), ∆9-THC and ∆8-THC in hemp seed oil with sufficient recoveries and precision for screening. Comparing the qNMR results to HPLC-MS/MS data for 46 commercial CBD oils verified the qNMR accuracy for ∆9-THC and CBD, but with higher limits of detection. The developed qNMR method paves the way for increasing the sample throughput as a complementary screening before HPLC-MS/MS.

Geographical discrimination and adulteration analysis for edible oils using two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy and convolutional neural networks (CNNs)

Geographical discrimination and adulteration analysis play significant roles in edible oil analysis. A novel method for discrimination and adulteration analysis of edible oils were proposed in this study. The two-dimensional correlation spectra of edible oils were obtained by solvents perturbation and the convolutional neural networks (CNNs) were constructed to analyze the synchronous and asynchronous correlation spectra of the edible oils. The differences for geographical origins of oils or oil types could be amplificated through the networks. For different networks, the layer sequences and the filter number of convolutional layers may affect the analysis results. A group of sesame oils from different geographical origins and a group of olive oils adulterated by other vegetable oils were adopted to evaluate the proposed method. The results show that the proposed method may provide an alternative method for edible oil discrimination and adulteration analysis in practical applications. For the two datasets, the prediction accuracy could be 97.3% and 88.5%, respectively.

Resolving the omega-3 methyl resonance with long echo time magnetic resonance spectroscopy in mouse adipose tissue at 9.4 T

Tissue omega-3 (ω-3) content is biologically important to disease; however, its quantification with magnetic resonance spectroscopy in vivo is challenging due to its low concentration. In addition, the ω-3 methyl resonance (≈ 0.98 ppm) overlaps that of the non-ω-3 (≈ 0.90 ppm), even at 9.4 T. We demonstrate that a Point-RESolved Spectroscopy (PRESS) sequence with an echo time (TE) of 109 ms resolves the ω-3 and non-ω-3 methyl peaks at 9.4 T. Sequence efficacy was verified on five oils with differing ω-3 fat content; the ω-3 content obtained correlated with that measured using 16.5 T NMR (R² = 0.97). The PRESS sequence was also applied to measure ω-3 content in visceral adipose tissue of three different groups (all n = 3) of mice, each of which were fed a different 20% w/w fat diet. The fat portion of the diet consisted of low (1.4%), medium (9.0%) or high (16.4%) ω-3 fat. The sequence was also applied to a control mouse fed a standard chow diet (5.6% w/w fat, which was 5.9% ω-3). Gas chromatography (GC) analysis of excised tissue was performed for each mouse. The ω-3 fat content obtained with the PRESS sequence correlated with the GC measures (R² = 0.96). Apparent T₂ times of methyl protons were assessed by obtaining spectra from the oils and another group of four mice (fed the high ω-3 diet) with TE values of 109 and 399 ms. Peak areas were fit to a mono-exponentially decaying function and the apparent T₂ values of the ω-3 and non-ω-3 methyl protons were 906 ± 148 and 398 ± 78 ms, respectively, in the oils. In mice, the values were 410 ± 68 and 283 ± 57 ms for ω-3 and non-ω-3 fats, respectively.

1H NMR Spectroscopy to Characterize Italian Extra Virgin Olive Oil Blends, Using Statistical Models and Databases Based on Monocultivar Reference Oils

During the last few years, the global demand for extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) is increased. Olive oil represents a significant percentage of world fat consumption determining an important development of its market. In this context, the problems related to counterfeiting and product fraud is becoming extremely relevant. Thus, the quality and authenticity control of EVOOs is nowadays mandatory. In this study we focused on the use of 1H NMR technique associated with multivariate statistical analysis to characterize Italian EVOOs commercial blends. In particular, a specific database including 126 monocultivar EVOOs reference samples, was used to characterize a total of 241 Italian EVOOs blends over four consecutive harvesting years. Moreover, the effect of the minor components (phenolic compounds) on the qualitative characterization of blended EVOOs was also evaluated. The correlation analysis of classification scores obtained using two pairwise orthogonal partial least square-discriminant analysis models (built with major and combined major-minor components NMR data) revealed that both could be profitably used to generally classify the studied Coratina containing blends.

Healing of dermal wounds property of Caryocar brasiliense oil loaded polymeric lipid-core nanocapsules: formulation and in vivo evaluation

Cutaneous lesions lead to complications in patients, since they may be recurrent and also represent risk of progression to infection and/or amputation. Therefore, effective, protective, and topical treatments of easy application and removal need to be developed to provide effective alternatives to patients. The Caryocar brasiliense Cambess (CBC) presents important pharmacological activities and proved in the healing process. This paper reports the improvement of the CBC nanostructured (LNC_CBC and LNC_CBC+) activity in dermal wounds in vivo. The oil was physico-chemically characterized and used in the development of lipid-core nanocapsules (LNCs), coated (LNC_CBC+) or without chitosan (LNC_CBC), in concentration of 1.0 mg mL^-1. Hydrogel (HG) was tested in vivo on lesions in the back of male Wistar rats for 14 days. The oil presented appropriate physico-chemical characteristics for its use, such as moisture 0.76 %, acidity 0.85 % and oleic acid 25.90 %. The LNCs showed nanometric size (around 200 nm), monomodal distribution, slight acid pH and zeta potential of + 22.1 mV in accordance with the composition. The nanostructured oil induced dermal healing in vivo showing significantly better improvement than free oil. LNC_CBC+ showed best results showing the higher increase of the production of type 1 collagen, an important protein to the healing repair. These results suggest that development of formulations LNC_CBC and LNC_CBC+ are promising and important alternative for the treatment of dermal wounds, avoiding complications related to cutaneous lesions.

Oxylipins Associated to Current Diseases Detected for the First Time in the Oxidation of Corn Oil as a Model System of Oils Rich in Omega-6 Polyunsaturated Groups. A Global, Broad and in-Depth Study by 1H NMR Spectroscopy

For the first time, an important number of oxylipins have been identified and quantified in corn oil submitted to mild oxidative conditions at each time of their oxidation process. This oil can be considered as a model system of edible oils rich in polyunsaturated omega-6 groups. The study was carried out using 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H NMR), which does not require chemical modification of the sample. These newly detected oxylipins include dihydroperoxy-non-conjugated-dienes, hydroperoxy-epoxy-, hydroxy-epoxy- and keto-epoxy-monoenes as well as E-epoxy-monoenes, some of which have been associated with several diseases. Furthermore, the formation of other functional groups such as poly-formates, poly-hydroxy and poly-ether groups has also been proven. These are responsible for the polymerization and increased viscosity of the oil. Simultaneously, monitoring of the formation of well-known oxylipins, such as hydroperoxy-, hydroxy-, and keto-dienes, and of different kinds of oxygenated-alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes such as 4-hydroperoxy-, 4-hydroxy-, 4-oxo-2E-nonenal and 4,5-epoxy-2E-decenal, which are also related to different degenerative diseases, has been carried out. The provided data regarding the compounds identification and their sequence and kinetics of formation constitute valuable information for future studies in which lipid oxidation is involved, both in food and in other scientific fields.

Application of 1H and 13C NMR Fingerprinting as a Tool for the Authentication of Maltese Extra Virgin Olive Oil

The application of ¹H and ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) in conjunction with chemometric methods was applied for the discrimination and authentication of Maltese extra virgin olive oils (EVOOs). A total of 65 extra virgin olive oil samples, consisting of 30 Maltese and 35 foreign samples, were collected and analysed over four harvest seasons between 2013 and 2016. A preliminary examination of ¹H NMR spectra using unsupervised principle component analysis (PCA) models revealed no significant clustering reflecting the geographical origin. In comparison, PCA carried out on ¹³C NMR spectra revealed clustering approximating the geographical origin. The application of supervised methods, namely partial least squares discriminate analysis (PLS-DA) and artificial neural network (ANN), on ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectra proved to be effective in discriminating Maltese and non-Maltese EVOO samples. The application of variable selection methods significantly increased the effectiveness of the different classification models. The application of ¹³C NMR was found to be more effective in the discrimination of Maltese EVOOs when compared to ¹H NMR. Furthermore, results showed that different ¹H NMR pulse methods can greatly affect the discrimination of EVOOs. In the case of ¹H NMR, the Nuclear Overhauser Effect (NOESY) pulse sequence was more informative when compared to the zg30 pulse sequence, since the latter required extensive spectral manipulation for the models to reach a satisfactory level of discrimination.

NMR Determination of Free Fatty Acids in Vegetable Oils

The identification and quantification of free fatty acids (FFA) in edible and non-edible vegetable oils, including waste cooking oils, is a crucial index to assess their quality and drives their use in different application fields. NMR spectroscopy represents an alternative tool to conventional methods for the determination of FFA content, providing us with interesting advantages. Here the approaches reported in the literature based on 1H, 13C and 31P NMR are illustrated and compared, highlighting the pros and cons of the suggested strategies.

Evaluations of the Peroxidative Susceptibilities of Cod Liver Oils by a 1H NMR Analysis Strategy: Peroxidative Resistivity of a Natural Collagenous and Biogenic Amine-Rich Fermented Product

High-resolution 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analysis was employed to molecularly screen the lipid, lipid oxidation product (LOP), and antioxidant compositions of four natural (unrefined) cod liver oil (CLO) products. Products 1-3 were non-fermented CLOs, whilst Product 4 was isolated from pre-fermented cod livers. Supporting analytical data that were acquired included biogenic amine, flavanone, tannin, phenolic antioxidant, α-tocopherol, and oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) determinations by recommended HPLC, LC/MS/MS, or spectrophotometric methods. SDS-PAGE, HPLC, and 1H NMR analyses investigated and determined collagenous antioxidants and their molecular mass ranges. 1H NMR analysis of aldehydic LOPs was employed to explore the susceptibilities/resistivities of each CLO product to peroxidation that is induced by thermal stressing episodes (TSEs) at 180°C, or following prolonged (42 day) storage episodes at 4 and 23 °C. Product 4 displayed extremely high ORAC values, which were much greater than those of Products 1-3, and that were predominantly ascribable to significant levels of peroxidation-blocking and/or aldehyde-consuming collagenous polypeptides/peptides and ammoniacal agents therein. Significantly lower levels of toxic aldehydes were generated in the pre-fermented Product 4 during exposure to TSEs, or the above long-term storage episodes. These results confirmed the enhanced peroxidative resistivity of a fermented, antioxidant-fortified natural CLO product over those of non-fermented unrefined products. Product 4: Green Pasture Blue Ice™ Fermented Cod Liver Oil.

Construction of an environmentally friendly octenylsuccinic anhydride modified pH-sensitive chitosan nanoparticle drug delivery system to alleviate inflammation and oxidative stress

An environmentally friendly octenylsuccinic anhydride modified pH-sensitive chitosan-octenylsuccinic anhydride (OSA-CS) was synthesized. The critical micelle concentration (CMC) of the modified chitosan was 27 μg/mL, the graft polymers can form solubilized curcumin (CUR) and quercetin (QUE) nanoparticles. The drug-loaded nanoparticles had high encapsulation efficiency and drug loading content, the self-assembly of graft polymers formed spherical uniform nanoparticles with an approximate diameter of 150-180 nm. The nanoparticles were stable under storage conditions and in serum. The results revealed that OSA-CS exhibited excellent biocompatibility, no cytotoxicity. Additionally, the results of pH sensitivity and drug release experiments showed that the nanoparticles were highly sensitive to weakly acidic conditions (pH 6.0) and showed a faster release rate, while they were reasonably stable at physiological conditions (pH 7.4). The drug-loaded nanoparticles exhibited higher cellular uptake in vitro, and exhibited stronger anti-inflammatory and antioxidant efficacy. Therefore, OSA-CS-based nanoparticles are a promising hydrophobic drug delivery system for pH-response targeting therapy.

Characterization of Polar and Non-Polar Compounds of House Edible Bird's Nest (EBN) from Johor, Malaysia

This work investigated the polar (PC: protein, amino acid and metabolite) and non-polar (NPC: fatty acid) compounds and bioactivity characteristics of the EBN harvested from the state of Johor in Malaysia. The electrophoretic gels exhibited 15 protein bands (16-173 kD) with unique protein profile. Amino acids analysis by AccQ⋅Tag method revealed 18 types of amino acids in EBN. Metabolite profiling was performed using High-Performance Liquid Chromatography coupled with Quadrupole Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometer (HPLC-QTOF/MS) technique and a total of 54 compounds belonging to different groups were detected and identified. These findings help to uncover the relation of therapeutic activity of EBN. The EBN was further extracted with AcOEt and BuOH. The AcOEt extract was fractionated into three fractions (F₁ -F₃ ), and the high triglyceride content in F₂ was verified by gC-FID. The three groups of fatty acids discovered in EBN are 48.43 % of poly-unsaturated (PUFA), 25.35 % of saturated fatty acids (SFA) and 24.74 % of mono-unsaturated fat (MUFA). This is the first time to report results ofEBN, BuOH, and AcOEt extracts and of fraction F₂ (TEBN) on their analysis for their antioxidant activities by DPPH, ABTS and catalase assay and for their paraoxonase and anti-tyrosinase activities. The results showed that TEBN exhibited the significant bioactivity in all assays. These findings suggest that TEBN is a good source for natural bioactive compounds in promoting body vigor. Current work widened the content of EBN especially on the triglyceride and also marked the content of specific location (Johor, Malaysia) of EBN origin.

Response of Bioactive Metabolite and Biosynthesis Related Genes to Methyl Jasmonate Elicitation in Codonopsis pilosula

Bioactive metabolites in Codonopsis pilosula are of particular interest as an immunostimulant. Methyl jasmonate (MeJA) plays an important role in the elicitation of metabolite biosynthesis. Here, we explored the response of metabolites to MeJA elicitation in C. pilosula adventitious roots and multiple shoots. The results showed that the biomass, polysaccharide, and lobetyolin content of adventitious roots exhibited the highest increases with 100 µmol·L⁻¹ MeJA at the 16th day of subculture, whereas the atractylenolide III (a terpenoid) content increased extremely with 50 µmol·L⁻¹ MeJA treatment at the 7th day of subculture. In addition, the biomass and lobetyolin content significantly increased at the 4th day after treatment. Similarly, the polysaccharide and lobetyolin content increased in multiple shoots. Further identification of different metabolites responding to MeJA by ¹H-NMR showed an extremely significant increase of the lobetyolinin level, which coincided with lobetyolin. Accordingly, the precursor, fatty acids, showed a highly significant decrease in their levels. Furthermore, a significant increase in β-d-fructose-butanol glycoside was detected, which was accompanied by a decrease in the sucrose level. Accordingly, the enzyme genes responsible for terpenoid and carbohydrate biosynthesis, CpUGPase, and CpPMK, were up regulated. In conclusion, MeJA promoted culture growth and accelerated bioactive metabolite accumulation by regulating the expression of the metabolite biosynthesis related genes, CpUGPase and CpPMK in C. pilosula.

Modulation of Cyclodextrin Particle Amphiphilic Properties to Stabilize Pickering Emulsion

Cyclodextrins have been proven to form complexes with linear oil molecules and stabilize emulsions. Amphiphilic properties of cyclodextrin particles were modulated through esterification reaction between β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) and octadecenyl succinic anhydride (ODSA) under alkaline conditions. ODS-β-CD particles with degree of substitution (DS) of 0.003, 0.011, and 0.019 were obtained. The introduced hydrophobic long chain that was linked within β-CD cavity led to the change of ODS-β-CD in terms of morphological structure, surface charge density, size, and contact angle, upon which the properties and stability of the emulsions stabilized by ODS-β-CD were highly dependent. The average diameter of ODS-β-CD particles ranged from 449 to 1484 nm. With the DS increased from 0.003 to 0.019, the contact angle and absolute zeta potential value of these ODS-β-CD particles improved from 25.7° to 47.3° and 48.1 to 62.8 mV, respectively. The cage structure of β-CD crystals was transformed to channel structure, then further to amorphous structure after introduction of the octadecenyl succinylation chain. ODS-β-CD particles exhibited higher emulsifying ability compared to β-CD. The resulting Pickering emulsions formed by ODS-β-CD particles were more stable during storage. This study investigates the ability of these ODS-β-CD particles to stabilize oil-in-water emulsions with respect to their amphiphilic character and structural properties.

Analytical Methods to Evaluate the Quality of Edible Fats and Oils: The JOCS Standard Methods for Analysis of Fats, Oils and Related Materials (2013) and Advanced Methods

Edible fats and oils are among the basic components of the human diet, along with carbohydrates and proteins, and they are the source of high energy and essential fatty acids such as linoleic and linolenic acids. Edible fats and oils are used in for pan- and deep-frying, and in salad dressing, mayonnaise and processed foods such as chocolates and cream. The physical and chemical properties of edible fats and oils can affect the quality of oil foods and hence must be evaluated in detail. The physical characteristics of edible fats and oils include color, specific gravity, refractive index, melting point, congeal point, smoke point, flash point, fire point, and viscosity, while the chemical characteristics include acid value, saponification value, iodine value, fatty acid composition, trans isomers, triacylglycerol composition, unsaponifiable matters (sterols, tocopherols) and minor components (phospholipids, chlorophyll pigments, glycidyl fatty acid esters). Peroxide value, p-anisidine value, carbonyl value, polar compounds and polymerized triacylglycerols are indexes of the deterioration of edible fats and oils. This review describes the analytical methods to evaluate the quality of edible fats and oils, especially the Standard Methods for Analysis of Fats, Oils and Related Materials edited by Japan Oil Chemists' Society (the JOCS standard methods) and advanced methods.

Unsaturation level decreased in bone marrow fat of postmenopausal women with low bone density using high resolution magic angle spinning (HRMAS) 1H NMR spectroscopy

There are increasing evidences suggesting bone marrow adiposity tissue (MAT) plays a critical role in affecting both bone quantity and quality. However, very limited studies that have investigated the association between the composition of MAT and bone mineral density (BMD). The goal of this study was to quantify MAT unsaturation profile of marrow samples from post-menopausal women using ex vivo high-resolution magic angle spinning (HRMAS) proton nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H NMR) spectroscopy, and to investigate the relationship between MAT composition and BMD. Bone marrow samples were obtained by iliac crest aspiration during surgical procedures from 24 postmenopausal women (65-89years) who had hip surgery due to bone fracture or arthroplasty. Marrow fat composition parameters, in particular, unsaturation level (UL), mono-unsaturation level (MUL) and saturation level (SL), were quantified using HRMAS ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The patients were classified into three groups based on the DXA BMD T-scores: controls, osteopenia and osteoporosis. Marrow fat composition was compared between these three groups as well as between subjects with and without factures using ANOCOVA, adjusted for age. Subjects with lower BMD (n=17) had significantly lower MUL (P=0.003) and UL (P=0.039), and significantly higher SL (P=0.039) compared to controls (n=7). When separating lower BMD into osteopenia (n=9) and osteoporosis (n=8) groups, subjects with osteopenia had significantly lower MUL (P=0.002) and UL (P=0.010), and significantly higher SL (P=0.010) compared to healthy controls. No significant difference was observed between subjects with osteopenia and osteoporosis. Using HRMAS ¹H NMR, significantly lower unsaturation and significantly higher saturation levels were observed in the marrow fat of subjects with lower BMD. HRMAS ¹H NMR was shown to be a powerful tool for identifying novel MR markers of marrow fat composition that are associated with bone quality and potentially fracture, and other bone pathologies and changes after treatment. A better understanding of the relationship between bone marrow composition and bone quality in humans may identify novel treatment targets, and provide guidance on novel interventions and therapeutic strategies for bone preservation.

High Resolution NMR Spectroscopy as a Structural and Analytical Tool for Unsaturated Lipids in Solution

Mono- and polyunsaturated lipids are widely distributed in Nature, and are structurally and functionally a diverse class of molecules with a variety of physicochemical, biological, medicinal and nutritional properties. High resolution NMR spectroscopic techniques including 1H-, 13C- and 31P-NMR have been successfully employed as a structural and analytical tool for unsaturated lipids. The objective of this review article is to provide: (i) an overview of the critical 1H-, 13C- and 31P-NMR parameters for structural and analytical investigations; (ii) an overview of various 1D and 2D NMR techniques that have been used for resonance assignments; (iii) selected analytical and structural studies with emphasis in the identification of major and minor unsaturated fatty acids in complex lipid extracts without the need for the isolation of the individual components; (iv) selected investigations of oxidation products of lipids; (v) applications in the emerging field of lipidomics; (vi) studies of protein-lipid interactions at a molecular level; (vii) practical considerations and (viii) an overview of future developments in the field.

Applications of nuclear magnetic resonance in lipid analyses: An emerging powerful tool for lipidomics studies

The role of lipids in cell, tissue, and organ physiology is crucial; as many diseases, including cancer, diabetes, neurodegenerative, and infectious diseases, are closely related to absorption and metabolism of lipids. Mass spectrometry (MS) based methods are the most developed powerful tools to study the synthetic pathways and metabolic networks of cellular lipids in biological systems; leading to the birth of an emerging subject lipidomics, which has been extensively reviewed. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), another powerful analytical tool, which allows the visualization of single atoms and molecules, is receiving increasing attention in lipidomics analyses. However, very little work focusing on lipidomic studies using NMR has been critically reviewed. This paper presents a first comprehensive summary of application of ¹H, ¹³C &³¹P NMR in lipids and lipidomics analyses. The scientific basis, principles and characteristic diagnostic peaks assigned to specific atoms/molecular structures of lipids are presented. Applications of 2D NMR in mapping and monitoring of the components and their changes in complex lipids systems, as well as alteration of lipid profiling over disease development are also reviewed. The applications of NMR lipidomics in diseases diagnosis and food adulteration are exemplified.

Determination of 1,2/1,3-diglycerides in Sicilian extra-virgin olive oils by 1H-NMR over a one-year storage period

This study is aimed to monitor by ¹H NMR spectroscopy the effect of a 12-month storage period on the 1,2-diglycerides over 1,3-diglycerides ratio for five mono-cultivar 'extra virgin olive oils' (EVOO) (Arbequina, Arbosana, Cerasuola, Nocellara and FS17) and one blend of two different cultivars (Nocellara + Biancolilla) preserved in the dark and at room temperature. These quantifications, at 500 MHz, are readily extracted through a specific and original integration difference method. Albeit it was known that the isomerisation rate is affected by the free acidity, we here demonstrate that it also depends on the presence of specific macromolecules (lipases), indeed, different EVOO cultivars with similar free acidity, show different isomerisation rate. Our results are consistent with similar diglyceride monitoring performed on Greek and Spanish EVOOs by ³¹P NMR.

Low-field (1)H NMR spectroscopy for distinguishing between arabica and robusta ground roast coffees

This work reports a new screening protocol for addressing issues of coffee authenticity using low-field (60MHz) bench-top (1)H NMR spectroscopy. Using a simple chloroform-based extraction, useful spectra were obtained from the lipophilic fraction of ground roast coffees. It was found that 16-O-methylcafestol (16-OMC, a recognized marker compound for robusta beans) gives rise to an isolated peak in the 60MHz spectrum, which can be used as an indicator of the presence of robusta beans in the sample. A total of 81 extracts from authenticated coffees and mixtures were analysed, from which the detection limit of robusta in arabica was estimated to be between 10% and 20% w/w. Using the established protocol, a surveillance exercise was conducted of 27 retail samples of ground roast coffees which were labelled as "100% arabica". None were found to contain undeclared robusta content above the estimated detection limit.

Chromatographic, NMR and vibrational spectroscopic investigations of astaxanthin esters: application to "Astaxanthin-rich shrimp oil" obtained from processing of Nordic shrimps

Astaxanthin (ASTX) is a keto carotenoid, which possesses a non-polar linear central conjugated chain and polar β-ionone rings with ketone and hydroxyl groups at the extreme ends. It is well known as a super anti-oxidant, and recent clinical studies have established its nutritional benefits. Although it occurs in several forms, including free molecule, crystalline, aggregates and various geometrical isomers, in nature it exists primarily in the form of esters. Marine animals accumulate ASTX from primary sources such as algae. Nordic shrimps (P. borealis), which are harvested widely in the Atlantic Ocean, form a major source of astaxanthin esters. "Astaxanthin-rich shrimp oil" was developed as a novel product in a shrimp processing plant in Eastern Canada. A compositional analysis of the shrimp oil was performed, with a view to possibly use it as a nutraceutical product for humans and animals. Astaxanthin-rich shrimp oil contains 50% MUFAs and 22% PUFAs, of which 20% are omega-3. In addition, the shrimp oil contains interesting amounts of EPA and DHA, with 10%/w and 8%/w, respectively. Astaxanthin concentrations varied between 400 and 1000 ppm, depending on the harvesting season of the shrimp. Astaxanthin and its esters were isolated from the oil and analysed by NMR, FTIR and Micro-Raman spectroscopy. Astaxanthin mono- and diesters were synthesized and used as standards for the analysis of astaxanthin-rich shrimp oil. NMR and vibrational spectroscopy techniques were successfully used for the rapid characterization of monoesters and diesters of astaxanthin. Raman spectroscopy provided important intermolecular interactions present in the esterified forms of astaxanthin molecules. Also discussed in this paper is the use of NMR, FTIR and Micro-Raman spectroscopy for the detection of astaxanthin esters in shrimp oil.

Synthesis and Characterization of Acrylated Epoxidized Flaxseed Oil for Biopolymeric Applications

In this study acrylated epoxidized flaxseed oil was synthesized and then characterized by spectroscopic techniques. Triglycerides are the main constituents of flaxseed oil and the carbon-carbon double bond is the reaction site for epoxidation. Flaxseed oil was epoxidized by adding formic acid and hydrogen peroxide. Acrylic acid was then added to produce acrylated epoxidized flaxseed oil (AEFO). The change in the structure of the fatty acids chain after the epoxidation and acrylation reactions was measured and characterized by Hydrogen nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H NMR) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The FTIR spectra of epoxidized flaxseed oil and flaxseed oil shows the disappearance of the =C–H (3012 cm−1) and C=C (1654 cm−1) peaks. The FTIR spectra confirmed the formation of AEFO since the presence of hydroxyl group (–OH) was shown by the peak at 3455 cm−1 and the acrylate group (–CH=CH2), which was indicated by the peaks at 1406, 984 and 812 cm−1. The changes in peaks of the 1H NMR spectra also confirmed the formation of AEFO. The number of acrylate groups/molecule of triglyceride was found to be 2.6 from 1H NMR spectra.

Detection of Butter Adulteration with Lard by Employing (1)H-NMR Spectroscopy and Multivariate Data Analysis

The authentication of food products from the presence of non-allowed components for certain religion like lard is very important. In this study, we used proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance ((1)H-NMR) spectroscopy for the analysis of butter adulterated with lard by simultaneously quantification of all proton bearing compounds, and consequently all relevant sample classes. Since the spectra obtained were too complex to be analyzed visually by the naked eyes, the classification of spectra was carried out.The multivariate calibration of partial least square (PLS) regression was used for modelling the relationship between actual value of lard and predicted value. The model yielded a highest regression coefficient (R(2)) of 0.998 and the lowest root mean square error calibration (RMSEC) of 0.0091% and root mean square error prediction (RMSEP) of 0.0090, respectively. Cross validation testing evaluates the predictive power of the model. PLS model was shown as good models as the intercept of R(2)Y and Q(2)Y were 0.0853 and -0.309, respectively.