Analysis of Enantiomers in Products of Food Interest

Abstract

The separation of enantiomers has been started in the past and continues to be a topic of great interest in various fields of research, mainly because these compounds could be involved in biological processes such as, for example, those related to human health. Great attention has been devoted to studies for the analysis of enantiomers present in food products in order to assess authenticity and safety. The separation of these compounds can be carried out utilizing analytical techniques such as gas chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, supercritical fluid chromatography, and other methods. The separation is performed mainly employing chromatographic columns containing particles modified with chiral selectors (CS). Among the CS used, modified polysaccharides, glycopeptide antibiotics, and cyclodextrins are currently applied.

Resolution of alkaloid racemate: a novel microbial approach for the production of enantiopure lupanine via industrial wastewater valorization

“…Enantiomers comprise molecules that include the same chemical formula as well as identical physical and chemical properties in a chiral environment [3]. However, the biological activity of two enantiomers could be significantly different constituting the cost-effective enantioselective synthesis an important industrial topic [20].…”

Direct enantioseparation of mandelic acid by high‐performance liquid chromatography using a phenyl column precoated with a small amount of cyclodextrin additive in a mobile phase

“…Since Davankov and Rogozhin introduced chiral ligand exchange chromatography for direct enantioseparation of amino acids, 1,2 a large number of chiral high‐performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) methods have been reported as reviewed 3–10 . The main strategies of chiral HPLC can be divided into two categories, direct and indirect methods.…”

“…The main strategies of chiral HPLC can be divided into two categories, direct and indirect methods. The direct method, which does not require chemical derivatization, is based on a chiral stationary phase or a chiral selector in a mobile phase with an achiral stationary phase 3–10 . Separation is possible through reversible diastereomeric association between the chromatographic chiral environment and analyte enantiomers.…”

“…Separation is possible through reversible diastereomeric association between the chromatographic chiral environment and analyte enantiomers. The direct methods using chiral stationary phases are the most applied in separation science 6 . The use of chiral stationary phases may not be sometimes effective because of interferences from matrix and/or endogeneous compounds.…”

“…However, this method requires high chiral purity of the chiral selectors, and expensive selectors cannot be used because the mobile phase with a selector is use‐and‐discard. Among these methods, cyclodextrins (CDs) and their derivatives have been used as a chiral selector 6,8,10 . In the inclusion complexation, the cavity of native or derivatized CDs hydrophobically interacts with a hydrophobic part of chiral analytes, such as an aromatic ring 11,12 .…”