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A Potential Commercial Source of Fucoxanthin Extracted from the Microalga Phaeodactylum tricornutum

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Abstract

Fucoxanthin, one of the main marine carotenoids, is abundant in macro- and microalgae. Here, fucoxanthin was isolated and structurally identified as the major carotenoid in the diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum through chromatographic and spectroscopic methods, such as liquid chromatography–positive-ion atmospheric pressure chemical ionization/mass spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance. This pigment was quantified by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography, and a number of extraction procedures were assessed to investigate the effect of solvent type, extraction time, temperature, and extraction method (maceration, ultrasound-assisted extraction, Soxhlet extraction, and pressurized liquid extraction). Among the investigated solvents, ethanol provided the best fucoxanthin extraction yield (15.71 mg/g freeze-dried sample weight). Fucoxanthin content in the extracts produced by the different methods was quite constant (15.42–16.51 mg/g freeze-dried sample weight) but increased steeply based on the percentage of ethanol in water, emphasizing the importance of ethanol in the extraction. The results indicate that P. tricornutum is a rich source of fucoxanthin (at least ten times more abundant than that in macroalgae) that is easily extracted with ethanol, suggesting potential applications in human and animal food, health, and cosmetics.

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Acknowledgments

This research was financially supported by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MEST), Gangwon Province, Gangneung City, Gangneung Science Industry Foundation (GSIF) as the R&D Project for Gangneung science park promoting program.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Functional Food Center, Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), 679 Saimdang-ro, Gangneung, 210-340, Republic of Korea

    Sang Min Kim, Yu-Jin Jung, Kwang Hyun Cha, Byung-Hun Um & Cheol-Ho Pan

  2. Research and Education Center for Marine Biology, Gangneung-Wonju National University, Gangneung, 210-702, Republic of Korea

    Oh-Nam Kwon

  3. Department of Marine Food Science and Technology, Medical and Bio-Material Research Center, Gangneung-Wonju National University, Gangneung, 210-702, Republic of Korea

    Donghwa Chung

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  1. Sang Min Kim
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  2. Yu-Jin Jung
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Correspondence to Cheol-Ho Pan.

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Kim, S.M., Jung, YJ., Kwon, ON. et al. A Potential Commercial Source of Fucoxanthin Extracted from the Microalga Phaeodactylum tricornutum . Appl Biochem Biotechnol 166, 1843–1855 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12010-012-9602-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12010-012-9602-2

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