Effect of processing parameters on sunflower phosphatidylcholine-enriched fractions extracted with aqueous ethanol

Abstract

Lecithins are widely used in the food industry because of their multifunctional characteristics. Fractionation of the original mixture of phospholipids in lecithin is desirable for certain applications. The influence of ethanol/water mixtures (90 : 10 to 96 : 4) and other operative conditions (temperature 35-65 °C, incubation time 30-90 min, solvent/lecithin ratio 2 : 1, 3 : 1) on the extraction of phosphatidylcholine (PC)-enriched fractions of sunflower lecithin (a non-GMO product) was investigated. Yield % and phospholipid composition of the enriched PC fractions as well as the residue were determined. The percent extraction coefficient of each phospholipid (EPC, EPE and EPI) in the enriched PC fraction was calculated. Values of EPC varied from 6.5 (35 °C, 30 min, 2 : 1, 90 : 10) to 52.6 (65 °C, 90 min, 3 : 1, 96 : 4). High temperature and long incubation time produced a significant increase of this coefficient (p <0.05) while a high water content in the ethanolic mixture resulted in a considerable decrease in PC extraction. EPI (<3%) values showed the high insolubility of phosphatidylinositol. Statistical analysis and response surface methodology evidenced the influence of the different variables on the extraction of PC-enriched fractions at laboratory scale.