Recovery of Red Pigments from Monascus purpureus FTC 5357 by Extraction of Fermented Solids: Operational Conditions and Kinetics

Abstract Solvent extraction of red pigments from fermented solids is reported. The pigments were produced by solid-state fermentation of oil palm frond (OPF) biomass with the food-safe fungus Monascus purpureus FTC 5357. The effects of extraction solvent and other operational conditions (pH, temperature, agitation rate, contact time) on the recovery of pigments are discussed. The recovery was maximized using aqueous ethanol (60% ethanol by vol) as solvent at pH 6, 30 °C, with an extraction time of 16 h and an agitation rate of 180 rpm. A fermented solids dry mass of 1 g was used for each 160 mL of solvent during extraction. The kinetics of extraction were assessed by fitting the experimental data to different models. Peleg's model proved to be the best for describing solid-liquid extraction of the pigments under the above specified conditions. The highest extraction yield of red pigments under the above specified optimal conditions was 207(6.08 AU g(1 dry fermented solids.

Sustitución de colorantes en alimentos / Substitution of colorants in food

Los alimentos funcionales marcan las nuevas tendencias en producción y desarrollo del mercado. Entre ellos, los que tienen propiedades antioxidantes ocupan un importante segmento. Esto, unido a la necesidad de encontrar sustitutos para algunos ingredientes potencialmente tóxicos o alérgenos, obliga a la búsqueda permanente de productos naturales. En el caso de colorantes, el betacaroteno reúne dos propiedades importantes: es un poderoso antioxidante y a la vez posee poder pigmentante que varía desde el rojo hasta el amarillo. Se plantea la posibilidad de sustituir el colorante sintético tartrazina por uno igualmente sintético pero imitando al natural, el b-caroteno, evaluando su estabilidad y capacidad de pigmentación, además de sus potenciales propiedades funcionales.

Functional foods are the newest tendency in production and market development. Among them, those with antioxidant properties have a very important position. This, along with the fact that we need to find substitutes for some potentially toxic or allergenic ingredients, compels us to keep looking for natural products. In the case of colorants, betacarothene gathers two important characteristics: It is a powerful antioxidant and also has a coloring power from red to yellow. It is proposed to replace the synthetic colorant tartrazine with another synthetic but that imitates the natural, the bcarothene, evaluating its stability and coloring capability, and also its potential functional properties.