Bioaccessibility of carotenoids fromChlorella vulgarisandChlamydomonas reinhardtii

Abstract

Microalgae can contribute to a balanced diet because of their composition. Beside numerous essential nutrients, carotenoids are in the focus for food applications. The bioavailability of carotenoids from photoautotrophic-cultivated Chlorella vulgaris (C. vulgaris) and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (C. reinhardtii) was compared. An in vitro digestion model was used to investigate carotenoid bioaccessibility. Furthermore, the effect of sonication on bioaccessibility was assessed. Lutein was the main carotenoid in both species. C. reinhardtii showed higher amounts of lutein and β-carotene than C. vulgaris. In contrast to C. reinhardtii, no β-carotene and only 7% of lutein were bioaccessible in nonsonicated C. vulgaris. Sonication increased the bioaccessibility of carotenoids from C. vulgaris to a level comparable with C. reinhardtii (β-carotene: ≥ 10%; lutein: ≥ 15%). Thus, C. reinhardtii represents a good carotenoid source for potential use in foods without processing, while the application of processing methods, like sonication, is necessary for C. vulgaris.

Applications of microalga Chlorella vulgaris in aquaculture

“…Beta‐carotene is one of the main carotenoids present in C. vulgaris (Gille et al . ), and its production can be naturally upregulated by supplementation of salt in culture media (Mojtaba et al . ).…”

“…Beta-carotene is one of the main carotenoids present in C. vulgaris (Gille et al 2016), and its production can be naturally upregulated by supplementation of salt in culture media (Mojtaba et al 2013). The beta-carotene produced by microalgae and other plants is used as food colouring agent and pro-vitamin A (retinol) in livestock and aquaculture feeds (Borowitzka 2013;Yaakob et al 2014).…”

Pressurized extraction of unsaturated fatty acids and carotenoids from wet Chlorella vulgaris and Phaeodactylum tricornutum biomass using subcritical liquids

“…Green microalgae like Chlorella vulgaris are well‐known for a high protein content and their capability to accumulate high amounts of triacylglycerides (TAG) with mainly monounsaturated fatty acids (Ursu et al, ). In contrast, diatoms like Phaeodactylum tricornutum can provide a high amount of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), for example, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5 ω‐3) as well as carotenoids (Gille, Trautmann, Posten, & Briviba, ; Ryckebosch et al, ; Zhang, Wang, Gao, Huang, & Zhang, ).…”

Mikroalgen in der Humanernährung – eine sinnvolle Zukunftsperspektive?

“…Bei allen aus Mikroalgen extrahierten Pigmenten handelt es sich um natürliche Farbstoffe, die eine Vielzahl von Wirkungen aufweisen können, darunter antiinflammatorische, antikanzerogene und antioxidative [57]. Es konnte bereits gezeigt werden, dass ähnlich wie bei den Proteinen, die Prozessierung der Algen einen Einfluss auf die Akzessibilität der Carotinoide hat [58]. Vor allem β-Carotin, dass aus der Alge Dunaliella in großen Maßstäben extrahiert werden kann, spielt eine wichtige Rolle als Farbstoff [59].…”