Nutraceuticals lecithin

Recent developments in the area of oils and fats has led to the production of specialty lipids from novel sources such as fruit seeds, nuts, and other minor plant sources. In addition, preparation of structured lipids for a myriad of applications has been of interest. Minor components of oils and fats may be isolated during processing and used as nutraceutical and functional food ingredients. Examples are lecithin, phytosterols, tocopherols, and tocotrienols, among others. Obviously, the health-promoting potential of such products is also of interest. 

Recently, phospholipids, e.g., lecithin, were classified as nutraceutical foods (Colbert, 1998). The off-flavor associated with lecithin produced in fermented dairy products includes 2,4-nonadienal, 2,4-decadienal, and hydrogen peroxide (Suriyaphan etal., 2001). 

Consider also more highly purified lecithin and other purified forms of phospholipid concentrates from oilseeds. Isolating a more purified form of lecithin using SC-CO2 may increase the price dramatically when compared to a lower quality product. Nutraceutical-grade phospholipids (i.e., concentrated phosphatidylcholine or phosphatidylserine) concentrated using SC-CO2 may conunand prices of US 1500/ lb in certain markets. Such economic incentives could easily justify investment of the SC-CO2 plant and equipment. 

Lysolecithins, which are more hydrophilic, show stronger oil-in-water emulsifying properties. Stable microemulsions have been prepared with various fractionated lecithins. These mlcroemulsions are used in direct applications as reservoirs for certain active materials (flavors, antioxidants, nutraceuticals, etc.) or as microreactors for enzymatic reactions. Several of these applications were... 

Lecithin One of the main phospholipids found in nature with important implications in metabolism and cell membranes. Lecithin is considered an important nutraceutical compound because it lowers blood cholesterol and is key to the synthesis of choline. Chemically, lecithin is the emulsifier phosphatidyl choline, and commercial lecithin consists of a mixture of different phospholipids such as phosphatidyl ethanol amine, phosphatidyl inositol, and phosphatidyl serine. Most commercial lecithin is obtained during the refining process of soybean oil. The egg yolk is also a rich source of lecithin. Lecithin is widely used in the baking, cookie, and wheat flour tortilla industries to improve dough machinability, improve texture, and retard staling. It is generally used from 0.1%-1%. 

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