Author(s): Pais, Rita ; Conde, Tiago ; Neves, Bruna B. ; Pinho, Marisa ; Coelho, Marta ; Pereira, Hugo ; Rodrigues, Alexandre M. C. ; Domingues, Pedro ; Gomes, Ana Maria ; Urbatzka, Ralph ; Domingues, Rosário ; Melo, Tânia
Date: 2024
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.14/47140
Origin: Veritati - Repositório Institucional da Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Subject(s): Fatty acids; Food; Lipidomics; Lipids; Microalgae
Dunaliella salina is a green microalga extensively explored for β-carotene production, while knowledge of its lipid composition is still limited and poorly investigated. Among lipids, polar lipids have been highlighted as bioactive phytochemicals with health-promoting properties. This research aimed to provide an in-depth lipidome profiling of D. salina using liquid and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. The lipid content was 6.8%, including phospholipids, glycolipids, betaine lipids, sphingolipids, triglycerides, diglycerides, and pigments. Among the total esterified fatty acids, 13.6% were 18:3 omega-3 and 14.7% were 18:1 omega-9. The lipid extract of D. salina showed anti-inflammatory activity by inhibiting cyclooxygenase-2 activity at 100 µg/mL, dose-dependent antioxidant scavenging activity, and antidiabetic activity by inhibiting α-glucosidase activity at 25 and 125 µg/mL. In conclusion, the lipid extract of D. salina has the potential to be used as a functional food ingredient or in the nutraceutical and cosmeceutical industries.
