Crude red palm oil of 8.7% free fatty acid content was deacidified using enzyme (lipase from Rhizomucor miehei), solvent (ethanol) and chemical (aqueous Sodium hydroxide) and its impact on chemical characteristics and composition were evaluated. Deacidification of oil using enzyme showed nearly 100% product yield. The neutral lipid loss after ethanol and sodium hydroxide deacidification of the oil was 13.6% and 19.5% respectively. The enzyme deacidified oil has shown a higher value in unsaponifiable matter (0.91%), monoacylglycerols (2.8%) and diacylglycerols (18.7%) contents as compared to the other two methods of deacidification. Also it showed a higher retention of nutraceuticals such as carotenoids (94%), phytosterols (57%), total tocopherols (71%), squalene (72%), coenzyme Q₁₀ (99%) and total phenolics (69%) with IC₅₀ value of 19.7 mg of oil/ml. Stearin content increased in the oil after deacidification with enzyme (47.4%) compared to the stearin content of crude red palm oil (28.6%). The olein fraction contained less saturated fatty acids (41.6%) than the fraction obtained by other two methods (47.2%). The enzyme catalyzed the esterification reaction of free fatty acids in crude red palm oil with added glycerol at 63°C with a rotation speed of 150 rpm under vacuum of 5 mmHg for the period of 12 h showed that enzyme based deacidification can be effectively utilized for the preparation of low acidic nutraceutical retained red palm oil.

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The components of the essential oil from the roots of Alangium salviifolium were analyzed by capillary gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Ninety compounds, representing 74.5% of the total oil, were identified; the main components of the oil were epi-α-cadinol, followed by trans-2-hydroxycalamenene, cadalene, and cadina-4,10(15)-dien-3-one. A further unknown component comprised 5.5% of the oil. Therefore, the essential oil was purified by flash column chromatography to isolate this component. Its structure was established using extensive spectroscopic data analyses, including NMR, HR-EI-MS, and IR. The results showed that this isolated compound was (−)-7, 8-dihydroxycalamenal, which is a novel cadinane-type sesquiterpenoid. This compound was tested for its antioxidant activity and inhibition of tyrosinase, and showed particularly strong inhibition effects.

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Isolation of proteins from rice bran was studied, comparing alkaline- and carbohydrase-aided extraction. It was found that protein extractability could be effectively improved using carbohydrases (Viscozyme L and α-amylase), especially when mechanical force was incorporated. Then, rice bran protein hydrolysates (RBPH) were prepared at various degrees of hydrolysis (DH), and employed to stabilize soybean O/W emulsion. Improved colloidal stability of the emulsions could be achieved using RBPH, especially at higher DH level, as indicated by an increase in the emulsifying activity index and better long-term dispersibility. The present work novelty suggested the efficiency of RBPH to improve oxidative stability of the emulsions. The most potent antioxidant activity was exhibited by RBPH with DH of 6.4 and 7.6%. With their efficiency to promote physicochemical stability of the emulsions, RBPH might be potently employed as a natural additive in emulsified food products, which is significant to value addition of rice bran for further industrial application.

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Nowadays, data concerning the composition of Caryodendron orinocense Karst. (Euphorbiaceae) and Bactris gasipaes Kunth (Arecaceae) seed oils are lacking. In light of this fact, in this paper fatty acids and unsaponifiable fraction composition have been determined using GC-MS, HPLC-DAD (Diode Array Detector), NMR approaches and possible future applications have been preliminary investigated through estimation of antioxidant activity, performed with DPPH test. For C. orinocense linoleic acid (85.59%) was the main component, lauric (33.29%) and myristic (27.76%) acids were instead the most abundant in B. gasipaes. C. orinocense unsaponifiable fraction (8.06%) evidenced a remarkable content of β-sitosterol, campesterol, stigmasterol, squalene and vitamin E (816 ppm). B. gasipaes revealed instead β-sitosterol and squalene as main constituents of unsaponifiable matter (3.01%). Antioxidant capacity evidenced the best performance of C. orinocense seed oil. These preliminary results could be interesting to suggest the improvement of the population’s incomes from Amazonian basin. In particular the knowledge of chemical composition of C. orinocense and B. gasipaes oils could be helpful to divulge and valorize these autochthones plants.

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This study was designed to investigate the anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive activities of essential oil recipe (OR) in rodents. The anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated by inflammatory models of dimethylbenzene (DMB)-induced ear vasodilatation and acetic acid-induced capillary permeability enhancement in mice whereas the antinociceptive activity was evaluated using acetic acid-induced writhes and hot plate test methods in mice. Additionally, the chemical composition of OR has been also analyzed by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (GC/MS). 37 compounds, representing 74.42% of the total oil content, were identified. β-Selinene (7.38%), aromadendrene (5.30%), β-elemene (5.22%), cis-piperitol (5.21%), cis-β-guaiene (4.67%), ylangene (3.70%), 3-heptadecene (3.55%), δ-cadinene (3%) and β-cadinene (2.87%) were found to be the major constituents of the oil. Oral pretreatment with OR (62.5-1000 mg/kg) not only decreased the DMB-induced ear vasodilatation but also attenuated capillary permeability under acetic acid challenge in mice. OR significantly reduced the writhing number evoked by acetic acid injection. All test samples showed no significant analgesic activity on the hot plate pain threshold in mice. These data demonstrated that the OR inhibits inflammatory and peripheral inflammatory pain. These results may support the fact that the essential oil of traditional Hui prescription played a role in the inflammation of stroke.

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A thermophilic bacterial isolate producing lipase was isolated from soil of hot spring and identified as Bacillus aerius (MTCC 10978). Peak lipase activity was observed when 30 h old inoculum was used and incubated in shaking conditions for 48 h. The optimal temperature and pH for the bacterial growth and lipase production was found to be 55°C and 8.0 respectively with cottonseed oil as carbon source, yeast extract and beef extract as nitrogen source. The enzyme produced by thermophilic Bacillus aerius (MTCC 10978) was purified to 9-fold with 7.2% recovery by ammonium sulfate precipitation and DEAE-Cellulose Column Chromatography. The enzyme was found to be a protein having a molecular weight of 33 kDa on SDS-PAGE. The K_m and V_max value of lipase using p-nitrophenyl palmitate as calculated from Lineweaver-Burk plot was 2.13 mM and 0.66 µmol/ml/min respectively.

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The essential oils from inflorescences, leaves and fruits of Amorpha canescens Pursh were analysed by GC, GC-MS and ¹H-NMR spectroscopy. More than 100 compounds were identified. Germacrene D (43.6%) and germacrene D-4-ol (8.3%) were the main constituents in the fruit oil. The oil from inflorescences contained mainly β-elemol (29.4%) and germacrene D (14.6%), whereas the leaf oil contained germacrene D (30.3%), germacrene D-4-ol (10.9%) and β-elemol (10.1%).

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To utilize n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) for a wide range of applications, we prepared phospholipids (PLs) containing PUFAs as constituent fatty acids (PUFA-PLs) via commercially available lipase OF-mediated transacylation with PL from soy (Soy-PL) and ethyl ester of PUFA (PUFA-Et). In a preliminary study to evaluate PUFA-incorporation (wt%) on phosphatidylcholine (PC), we observed that dehydration of Soy-PL is critical. PUFA-incorporation in PLs increased with acyl ratio and time. Finally, maximum PUFA-incorporation (47.1 ± 2.1 wt%) was obtained using the following reaction conditions: 2.0 mmol of Soy-PL, a PUFA-Et/Soy-PL acyl ratio of 7, 13 mL of hexane, 2.2 × 10⁵ U of lipase OF, 500 rpm of agitation, a temperature of 37°C, and 72 h of reaction time. The analysis of fatty acid composition at the sn-2 position of obtained PL revealed that PUFAs incorporated into Soy-PL localized to the sn-2 position of the PL molecule in spite of using lipase OF whose positional specificity is random for triacylglycerol.

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The ceramide (Cer) content of skin and glucosylceramide (GlcCer) intake affect skin moisture conditions, but their mutual relation in skin remains unclear. For clarification of that mutual relation, carbon stable isotopes (¹²C and ¹³C) are useful as a tracer. However, carbon isotopic measurement has not been applied to the study of clarifying their skin moisturizing effects. Therefore, we used gas chromatography / combustion / isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC-C-IRMS) to ascertain the appropriate conditions for carbon isotopic measurements using synthesized Cer (SCer) in substitution for very low concentrations of Cer in skin. SCer was derivatized to trimethylsilylated SCer (TMS-SCer) quantitatively using N-trimethylsilylimidazole (TMSI) depending on the amount of SCer. The derivatization rates were 75–85%. Excess TMSI was removed using three cycles of hexane–water distribution. Under these conditions, carbon isotopic measurements of TMS-SCer conducted using GC-C-IRMS showed high repeatability and good inter-day variation (S.D. < 0.3‰). The carbon stable isotope ratio value (δ¹³C) of SCer calculated using a mass balance equation was compared with δ¹³C of underivatized SCer, which was regarded as the actual δ¹³C of SCer obtained using sealed tube combustion method. The difference between the calculated δ¹³C of SCer and δ¹³C of the underivatized SCer depended on the TMSI reagent supplier and on the number of hydroxyl groups to be derivatized in SCer. For accurate δ¹³C of Cer in skin using GC-C-IRMS, the measured δ¹³C of a target TMS-Cer must be calculated using a correction factor representing the difference in δ¹³C of underivatized standard SCer from that of TMS-standard SCer having a structure resembling that of the target Cer in skin. In addition, we show that the same lot of TMSI reagent from a specific supplier must be used throughout the experiments.

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Effects of dietary firefly squid on serum and liver lipid levels were investigated. Male Wistar rats were fed a diet containing 5% freeze-dried firefly squid or Japanese flying squid for 2 weeks. There was no significant difference in the liver triacylglycerol level between the control and Japanese flying squid groups, but the rats fed the firefly squid diet had a significantly lower liver triacylglycerol content than those fed the control diet. No significant difference was observed in serum triacylglycerol levels between the control and firefly squid groups. The rats fed the firefly squid had a significantly lower activity of liver glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase compared to the rats fed the control diet. There was no significant difference in liver fatty acid synthetase activity among the three groups. Hepatic gene expression and lipogenic enzyme activity were investigated; a DNA microarray showed that the significantly enriched gene ontology category of down-regulated genes in the firefly squid group was “lipid metabolic process”. The firefly squid group had lower mRNA level of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase compared to the controls. These results suggest that an intake of firefly squid decreases hepatic triacylglycerol in rats, and the reduction of mRNA level and enzyme activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase might be related to the mechanisms.

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Water-based architectural paints commonly contain either mineral oil-based or silicone-based antifoams. Mineral oil-based antifoams generally reduce the gloss of paint films; thus, silicone-based antifoams are mainly used in the field of architectural paints. The relationship between the antifoaming performance and the particle size of hydrophobic silica for mineral oil-based antifoams was investigated and a novel mineral oil-based antifoam that provided a glossy surface to the paint films equivalent to the surface obtained with silicone-based antifoams and with excellent antifoaming performance compared to silicone-based antifoams was developed. The novel mineral oil-based antifoam exhibits better performance than silicon-based antifoam, and thus the former is a perfect alternative to the latter for use in architectural paints.

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Glycyrrhizic acid diethyl ester (GZ-DE) was developed as a prodrug of glycyrrhizic acid (GZ), a hepatitis therapeutic drug. We fortuitously found that GZ-DE gels with glycerin selectively while searching for a safe solvent with which to dissolve GZ-DE. Based on this gelation, the aim of this study was to investigate the preparation of the gel and study the rheology, physicochemical and structural properties of the glycerin gel by differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), capillary electrophoresis (CEP), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). The glycerin gel was prepared by the addition of at least 2.0% w/w GZ-DE. This gel did not flow at room temperature. After mixing glycerin and GZ-DE, a gel was formed after 2 days at 25°C or 3 h at 60°C. Glycerin gel containing 2.4% w/w GZ-DE provided the following results: 1) The glycerin gel exhibited creep at a constant stress of less than 10 Pa, but it is a fragile gel, showing Newtonian flow at 10 Pa stress. 2) Dynamic viscoelastic measurements showed that the elastic modulus (G’) exceeds the viscous modulus (G’’), indicating that glycerin gel has solid-like properties. 3) DSC showed a significant difference between the glass transition temperature of glycerin and glycerin gel. 4) CEP did not reveal a new compound in the glycerin gel. 5) NMR confirmed that glycerin gel is a physical gel. 6) SAXS measurements revealed that the glycerin gel has an oval-shaped basic frame (119 nm long and 65 nm wide).

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This study is focused on the volatile oils from the fruiting bodies of Pleurotus salmoneostramineus (PS) and P. sajor-caju (PSC), which was extracted by hydrodistillation (HD) and solvent-assisted flavor evaporation (SAFE) methods. The oils are analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), GC-olfactometry (GC-O), and aroma extract dilution analysis (AEDA). A total of 31, 31, 45, and 15 components were identified in PS (HD and SAFE) and PSC (HD and SAFE), representing about 80.3%, 92.2%, 88.9%, and 83.0% of the oils, respectively. Regarding the aroma-active components, 13, 12, 13, and 5 components were identified in PS (HD and SAFE) and PSC (HD and SAFE), respectively, by the GC-O analyses. The results of the sniffing test, odor activity value (OAV) and flavor dilution (FD) factor indicate that 1-octen-3-ol and 3-octanone are the main aroma-active components of PS oils. On the other hands, methional and 1-octen-3-ol were estimated as the main aroma-active components of PSC oils.

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Lung surfactant is a complex mixture of lipid and protein, responsible for alveolar stability, becomes dysfunctional due to alteration of its structure and function by leaked serum materials in disease. Serum proteins, cholesterol and low density lipoprotein (LDL) were studied with bovine lipid extract surfactant (BLES) using Langmuir films, and bilayer dispersions using Raman spectroscopy. While small amount of cholesterol (10 wt%) and LDL did not significantly affect the adsorption and surface tension lowering properties of BLES. However serum lipids, whole serum as well as higher amounts of cholesterol, and LDL dramatically altered the surface properties of BLES films, as well as gel-fluid structures formed in such films observed using atomic force microscopy (AFM). Raman-spectroscopic studies revealed that serum proteins, LDL and excess cholesterol had fluidizing effects on BLES bilayers dispersion, monitored from the changes in hydrocarbon vibrational modes during gel-fluid thermal phase transitions. This study clearly suggests that patho-physiological amounts of serum lipids (and not proteins) significantly alter the molecular arrangement of surfactant in films and bilayers, and can be used to model lung disease.

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