Thermal Behavior Improvement of Fortified Commercial Avocado (Persea americana Mill.) Oil with Maqui (Aristotelia chilensis) Leaf Extracts

Abstract

Avocado oil is considered a highly prized food due to its nutritional contribution. On the other hand, Aristotelia chilensis (Molina) Stuntz (Elaeocarpaceae), common name “maqui”, is an endemic fruit in Chile, well known for its exceptional antioxidant properties. In general, maqui by-products such as leaves are considered as waste. Thus, maqui leaves extracts were used to improve the stability of vegetable oils, particularly avocado oil. Hence, avocado oil was fortified with two extracts (ethyl ether and methanol) obtained of maqui leaves and exposed to 120 °C for 386 h in an oven. The results showed a high content of monounsaturated fatty acids (69.46%, mainly oleic acid), followed by polyunsaturated fatty acids (16.41%, mainly linoleic acid) and finally saturated fatty acids (14.13%). The concentration of the total phenolic compounds in the pure oil, ethyl ether and methanol maqui leaves extracts were 45.8, 83.7, and 4100.9 ppm, respectively. In addition, the antioxidant activity was 5091.6 and 19,452.5 µmol Trolox eq/g for the ethyl ether and methanol extracts, respectively. The secondary degradation compounds showed significant differences between the fortified and non-fortified samples after 144 h and the TG/DTG analysis showed a significant increment of 7 °C in the degradation temperature (Tonset) of avocado oil fortified with the methanol extract when compared to the non-fortified oil and fortified oil with ethyl ether extract. After heating for 336 h, fortified oil with methanol extract reached the limit percentages of polar compounds, while pure oil reached it in a shorter time, i.e., 240 h. Based on the results, avocado oil can be protected with natural additives such as extracts obtained from maqui leaves, leading to an increase in its thermo-oxidative stability.

A Review of the Functional Characteristics and Applications of Aristotelia chilensis (Maqui Berry), in the Food Industry

“…Researchers used Maqui leaf extracts and concluded that methanolic extract has a better protective effect on thermal oxidation when the oil is heated at 120 °C for 336 h in an oven. Natural extracts, which are by-products (leaves), can be an alternative to stabilize oils subjected to high temperatures [ 59 ].…”

“…Researchers used Maqui leaf extracts and concluded that methanolic extract has a better protective effect on thermal oxidation when the oil is heated at 120 • C for 336 h in an oven. Natural extracts, which are by-products (leaves), can be an alternative to stabilize oils subjected to high temperatures [59]. Maqui improved the nutritional value, reporting a greater amount of nutrients, fiber, antioxidants, total polyphenolics, and total anthocyanins.…”

Phytochemical Screening and Antioxidant Activity of Seven Native Species Growing in the Forests of Southern Chilean Patagonia

“…Medium protection level, for substances with SPF between 15 and 30. Low protection level, if the SPF value is between 2 and 15 [74].…”

Plant Antioxidants for Food Safety and Quality: Exploring New Trends of Research

“…Three different studies focused on this topic, analyzing lipid and protein oxidation in meat, namely beef [ 12 ], pork [ 13 ], and lamb [ 14 ]. One study focused on lipid oxidation in a vegetable oil [ 15 ]. Two also developed predictive models to monitor oxidation during storage.…”

“…Flores and colleagues [ 15 ] studied avocado oil supplementation with maqui tree leaf extracts, an endemic Chilean fruit renowned for its antioxidant properties. Maqui extracts obtained with different solvents proved to be beneficial in reducing the thermal oxidation (exposure at 120 °C for 386 h) of avocado oil.…”