Improvement of Physico-chemical Properties of Arbequina Extra Virgin Olive Oil Enriched with ß-Carotene from Fungi.

Nowadays the consumption of essential carotenoids is reduced due to the lower intake of fruits and vegetables, being humans not capable of synthesizing these molecules. ß-carotene is one of the most important carotenoids possessing anti-oxidation, anti-inflammation and anti-cancer properties. The aim of this work consists of preparing virgin olive oils enriched in ß-carotene from fungi at different concentrations (0.041 and 0.082 mg/mL) in order to obtain new functional foods. Values of quality parameters (free acidity, peroxide value, coefficients of specific extinction and p-anisidine) have been obtained, showing that quality of olive oils was improved. Furthermore, the effect of ß-carotene was evaluated as possible oxidative stabilizer during microwave heating and ultra violet-light exposure of the oils. As expected, the enrichment process brought changes in olive oils color, turning them orange-reddish. The use of natural antioxidants, in particular ß-carotene could be an effective way to protect virgin olive oils from degradation and is a good strategy also to enhance the consumption of bioactive compounds improving olive oils shelf-life and nutritional value.

Stability of carotenoids in Scenedesmus almeriensis biomass and extracts under various storage conditions.

Scenedesmus almeriensis biomass is a source of carotenoids, particularly lutein, and is considered to be promising as an alternative source to marigold. One key question concerning alternative sources of lutein is the loss of carotenoids that takes place between harvesting and processing, which in the case of marigold is frequently up to 50%. The work described here involved a study into the stability of the main carotenoids (lutein, violaxanthin, and beta-carotene), as well as other components, under different storage conditions. The experiments were carried out with biomass in three forms: frozen, freeze-dried, and spray-dried. The stability of extracts of Scenedesmus biomass in acetone and olive oil was also studied. The results show that the most important factor in retaining carotenoids is a low temperature. At -18 degrees C the loss of carotenoids was negligible after the storage period, regardless of the biomass form used (frozen, freeze-dried, or spray-dried). On the other hand, the carotenoid content and fatty acid profile was increasingly affected with increasing temperature. However, the protein content is unaffected by storage conditions.