Search

"Alperujos" of Arbequina olives harvested in 2010 and 2011 and of Nevadillo olives in 2012 were evaluated in order to reduce their pollutant load by recovering the phenols with antioxidant properties. First, three successive extractions with water (4 °C, 120 min) were carried out to evaluate by spectrophotometry the total phenol contents, which significantly varied with cultivar and harvest year. The combined aqueous extracts of "alperujo" (combined-AEA) showed high pollutant loads with volatile solids to total solids ratios close to 1 suggesting high organic material contents and very low total phenols to chemical oxygen demand ratios. Second, phenols were recovered from the combined-AEA using ethyl acetate. By experimental design, the following conditions were found to maximize phenol recovery: temperature = 20 °C, time = 120 min, pH of aqueous extract = 2.00 and solvent/extract ratio (v/v) = 3:1. Up to 41.6% of the phenols were recovered from the combined-AEA after three successive extractions using recycled solvent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Olive mill by-products are effluents generated during olive oil production process. The two-phase centrifugation system produces a semi-solid olive pomace called "alperujo." This by-product is a combination of liquid and solid wastes derived from the three-phase manufacturing process. A direct and fast analytical method by ultra-high-pressure liquid chromatography-DAD coupled with ESI/MS-MS has been developed for the profiling of phenolic compounds. Thirtyfive metabolites belonging to phenyl alcohols, secoiridoids, flavonoids, and iridoids were identified as the main constituents of alperujo in 12 min, including p-coumaroyl aldarate and a verbascoside derivative found for the first time in alperujo and a new ligstroside derivative. Six quantitatively significant components were determined at concentrations ranging from 17.7 mg/L for p-coumaric acid to 370.7 mg/L for hydroxytyrosol. Our data confirm that alperujo is an interesting source of phenolic compounds that could be extracted for use as nutraceuticals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmentally acceptable disposal of olive cultivation residues (e.g., olive prunings; olive pruning residues (OLPR)) and olive mill wastes is of paramount importance since they are generated in huge quantities within a short time. Moreover, olive mill wastewater (OMW) or sludge-like effluents ('alperujo'; two-phase olive mill waste (TPOMW)) are highly biotoxic. Hericium erinaceus is a white-rot fungus which produces choice edible mushrooms on substrates rich in lignocellulosics, and its suitability for the treatment of olive by-products was examined for the first time. Fungal growth resulted in a notable reduction of OMW's pollution parameters (i.e., 65 % decolorization, 47 % total phenolic reduction, and 52 % phytotoxicity decrease) and correlated with laccase and manganese peroxidase activities. Solid-state fermentation of various mixtures of OLPR, TPOMW, and beech sawdust (control) by H. erinaceus qualified OLPR in subsequent cultivation experiments, where it exhibited high mushroom yields and biological efficiency (31 %). Analyses of proximate composition and bioactive compound content revealed that mushrooms deriving from OLPR substrates showed significantly higher crude fat, total glucan, β-glucan, total phenolics, and ferric-reducing antioxidant potential values than the control. H. erinaceus demonstrated the potential to detoxify OMW and bioconvert OLPR into high-quality biomass, and hence, this fungus could be successfully exploited for the treatment of such by-products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study explored the in vitro antioxidant and anti-platelet activities of hydroxytyrosol, hydroxytyrosol acetate, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylglycol and two phenolic olive extracts. These compounds and extracts were obtained from a new industrial process to hydrothermally treat the alperujo (160 °C/60 min), a by-product of olive oil extraction. Methods: The extracts and the purified compounds were obtained chromatographically using both ionic and adsorbent resins. The antioxidant activity was determined by measuring inhibition of human platelet aggregation and inhibition of lipid peroxidation in liver microsomes of vitamin E-deficient rats. Results: The positive effect of the extracts on the inhibition of platelet aggregation is showed, being higher in the case of hydroxytyrosol acetate up to 38 %, and for the first time, its synergist effect with hydroxytyrosol has been proved, obtaining more than double of inhibition. The phenolic extracts and the isolated phenols showed good results for inhibiting the lipid oxidation, up to 62 and 25 %, respectively. A synergistic effect occurred when the hydroxytyrosol acetate and the 3,4-dihydroxyphenylglycol were supplemented by hydroxytyrosol. Conclusion: These results suggest the extract and these compounds obtained from a novel industrial process could be natural alternatives for the prevention of diseases related to cardiovascular disorder or oxidative damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The "alperujo" is a waste from the olive oil industry with great potential for valorization. It has a high organic load, with the presence of valuable compounds such as biophenols and sugars. The use of this waste can be thought of as a biorefinery from which different compounds of high added value can be obtained, whether they are present in the "alperujo" such as biophenols or can be generated from the "alperujo". Therefore, the production of carotenoids by Rhodotorula mucilaginosa was evaluated using the liquid fraction of 'alperujo' (Alperujo Water, AW) or an aqueous extract (AE) of "alperujo" at different concentrations (5, 10, 20 and 30% w/V) as substrates. The AEs had an acidic pH, a total sugar concentration ranging from 1.6 to 7.6 g/L, a polyphenols content from 0.4 to 2.9 g/L and a significant amount of proteins (0.5–3 g/L). AW is similar in composition as 30% AE, but with a higher amount of total sugars. Rh. mucilaginosa was able to grow at the different mediums with consumption of glucose and fructose, a reduction in protein content and alkalinization of the medium. Maximum total carotenoid production (7.3 ± 0.6 mg/L) was achieved at AW, while the specific production was higher when the yeast grew at AW or at 30% AE (0.78 ± 0.06 and 0.73 ± 0.10 mg/g of biomass, respectively). Torulene and torularhodin were the main carotenoids produced. Polyphenol content did not change; thus, it is still possible to recover these compounds after producing carotenoids. These results demonstrate the feasibility of using alperujo-based mediums as cheap substrates to produce torularhodin and torulene and to include this bioprocess as a step in an integral approach for alperujo valorization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]