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Antioxidant potential of microalgae in relation to their phenolic and carotenoid content

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Abstract

In the past decades, food scientists have been searching for natural alternatives to replace synthetic antioxidants. In order to evaluate the potential of microalgae as new source of safe antioxidants, 32 microalgal biomass samples were screened for their antioxidant capacity using three antioxidant assays, and both total phenolic content and carotenoid content were measured. Microalgae were extracted using a one-step extraction with ethanol/water, and alternatively, a three-step fractionation procedure using successively hexane, ethyl acetate, and water. Antioxidant activity of the extracts varied strongly between species and further depended on growth conditions and the solvent used for extraction. It was found that industrially cultivated samples of Tetraselmis suecica, Botryococcus braunii, Neochloris oleoabundans, Isochrysis sp., Chlorella vulgaris, and Phaeodactylum tricornutum possessed the highest antioxidant capacities in this study and thus could be a potential new source of natural antioxidants. The results from the different types of extracts clearly indicated that next to the well-studied carotenoids, phenolic compounds also contribute significantly to the antioxidant capacity of microalgae.

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Acknowledgments

This study was funded by the Industrial Research Fund of K.U.Leuven (project number IOF-KPH/09/002) and the Fund for Scientific Research (project G.A129.11 N). The authors wish to thank Maris projects, Necton S.A. and SBAE industries for providing algal biomass samples. Colette Cooreman and Bart Dewaele are acknowledged for their technical assistance. I. Fraeye is a Postdoctoral Researcher funded by the Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. KAHO Sint-Lieven, Laboratory of Enzyme, Fermentation, and Brewing Technology, Gebroeders De Smetstraat 1, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    Koen Goiris & Luc De Cooman

  2. Leuven Food Science and Nutrition Research Centre (LFoRCe), Department M2S, K. U. Leuven, Kasteelpark Arenberg 20, 3001, Leuven, Belgium

    Koen Goiris & Luc De Cooman

  3. Research unit Aquatic Biology, K.U.Leuven Kulak, Etienne Sabbelaan 53, 8500, Kortrijk, Belgium

    Koen Goiris & Koenraad Muylaert

  4. Research unit Food and Lipids, K.U.Leuven Kulak, Etienne Sabbelaan 53, 8500, Kortrijk, Belgium

    Ilse Fraeye & Imogen Foubert

  5. Departement Industrieel Ingenieur, KAHO Sint-Lieven, Gebroeders De Smetstraat 1, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    Jos De Brabanter

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  1. Koen Goiris
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Correspondence to Koen Goiris.

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Goiris, K., Muylaert, K., Fraeye, I. et al. Antioxidant potential of microalgae in relation to their phenolic and carotenoid content. J Appl Phycol 24, 1477–1486 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-012-9804-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-012-9804-6

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