Bioactive Lipids in <i>Dunaliella salina</i>: Implications for Functional Foods and Health
Rita Pais,
Tiago Conde,
Bruna B. Neves,
Marisa Pinho,
Marta Coelho,
Hugo Pereira,
Alexandre M. C. Rodrigues,
Pedro Domingues,
Ana Maria Gomes,
Ralph Urbatzka,
Rosário Domingues,
Tânia Melo
Affiliations
Rita Pais
CESAM—Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies, Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Santiago University Campus, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Tiago Conde
CESAM—Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies, Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Santiago University Campus, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Bruna B. Neves
CESAM—Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies, Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Santiago University Campus, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Marisa Pinho
CESAM—Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies, Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Santiago University Campus, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Marta Coelho
CBQF—Centro de Biotecnologia e Química Fina, Laboratório Associado, Escola Superior de Biotecnologia, Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Rua Diogo Botelho 1327, 4169-005 Porto, Portugal
Hugo Pereira
GreenCoLab—Associação Oceano Verde, University of Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal
Alexandre M. C. Rodrigues
Necton, S.A., Belamandil, 8700-152 Olhão, Portugal
Pedro Domingues
Mass Spectrometry Centre, LAQV-REQUIMTE, Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Santiago University Campus, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Ana Maria Gomes
CBQF—Centro de Biotecnologia e Química Fina, Laboratório Associado, Escola Superior de Biotecnologia, Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Rua Diogo Botelho 1327, 4169-005 Porto, Portugal
Ralph Urbatzka
Biodiscovery for Health Group, CIIMAR/CIMAR, Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, Terminal de Cruzeiros do Porto de Leixões, University of Porto, 4450-208 Matosinhos, Portugal
Rosário Domingues
CESAM—Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies, Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Santiago University Campus, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Tânia Melo
CESAM—Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies, Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Santiago University Campus, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
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.
