European Journal of Lipid Science and Technology最新文献

Odd-chain fatty acids (OCFAs), notably pentadecanoic acid (C15:0) and heptadecanoic acid (C17:0), were increasingly recognized for their potential biological and nutritional benefits. However, their crystallization behavior in triglycerides (TAGs) remained less understood compared to even-chain counterparts. This study investigated the crystallization properties of C15:0 and C17:0 TAGs and compared them with tripalmitin (PPP), a well-characterized even-chain TAG. The crystallization behavior, polymorphism, melting characteristics, crystallization kinetics, and crystal morphology of these TAGs were evaluated under varying cooling and heating rates. Similar to PPP, cooling rate was found to influence both crystallization and melting characteristics of odd ones, with faster cooling rates generally leading to lower crystallization temperatures. Anyhow, crystallization rates were primarily influenced by chain length, with longer carbon chains leading to faster crystallization, irrespective of odd or even. Still, odd-chain TAGs displayed distinct crystal transformation behavior during the melting and polymorph transitions compared to PPP. Specifically, although PPP underwent transitions through multiple polymorphs (α, β′, β), C15-TAG and C17-TAG primarily showed α-to-β transitions. The results indicated that the introduction of OCFAs led to a decrease in thermal stability. The offset temperature of C17:0 TAG is lower than that of PPP, which were 70.12°C and 68.77°C at a heating rate of 5°C/min, respectively. These findings highlighted the influence of chain length and cooling rate on crystallization dynamics, suggesting that odd-chain TAGs may offer unique functional properties in food and pharmaceutical applications.

Practical applications: Odd-chain fatty acids (OCFAs) received increasing attention for their biological functions. These new discoveries have provided a fresh perspective on the future development of their applications in food, pharmaceutical, and other systems. The understanding of their basic properties will help us understand their functions in cell membranes or their application systems.

This study focused on creating solid lipid microparticles (SLMs) that combine vitamin C (VC) and zinc-aminoclay (ZnAC) incorporation to improve skincare effectiveness. VC is known for its antioxidant and skin-brightening benefits, but it can be unstable and is poorly absorbed by the skin. ZnAC, a two-dimensional material with antimicrobial properties, helps enhance delivery. By encapsulating VC in ZnAC with SLMs, we aimed to boost its stability and skin absorption. We evaluated the physical properties, entrapment efficiency, and stability of these formulations. The results showed that VC-ZnAC-SLMs had better skin permeability and stability compared to VC alone and VC combined with ZnAC and SLM. The transdermal absorption of the VC-ZnAC-SLM achieved the highest transdermal absorption (2.42%), followed by VC-ZnAC and pure VC, with the transdermal absorption rates of 1.25% and 1.04%. The unique structure of ZnAC played a key role in these improvements. Our findings suggest that SLMs with ZnAC and VC could be an effective solution for cosmetic products.

Practical Applications: The developed VC-ZnAC-SLMs offer a practical solution for formulating more effective skincare products, especially those aimed at brightening and protecting the skin. By enhancing vitamin C's stability and absorption, these formulations can provide prolonged antioxidant benefits and improved delivery of skin-brightening effects. The inclusion of ZnAC further adds antimicrobial protection, which is beneficial for sensitive or acne-prone skin types. This combination could be applied in serums, creams, and masks, helping consumers achieve better skin health with more reliable, long-lasting results compared to conventional vitamin C products.

The properties of fats can be modified by interesterification. Current researches focus on the interesterification catalyzed by lipases and CH3ONa. This work provides a newly modification method of fats catalyzed by potassium hydroxide-glycerol (KOH-G) mixture. KOH-G mixtures (KOH:G, 1:2, 1:3, 1:4, and 1:5 (mol/mol), named by KOH-G2, KOH-G3, KOH-G4, and KOH-G5, respectively) were prepared and used to catalyze lard modification. The differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) results indicated that KOH-G mixtures were low transition temperature mixtures (LTTM). The ratios of KOH to G significantly affected the catalytic efficiency of these LTTMs, KOH-G2 showed higher catalytic efficiency than other KOH-Gs, moreover the modification could be performed at relatively low temperature (100°C). In the modification process, the interesterification and glycerolysis occurred simultaneously, leading to the variation of triacylglycerols and acylglycerols composition and slip melting point (SMP) of lard. The completely interesterified lard (CIL) was prepared at 100°C for 90 min with 1% KOH-G2 addition (on lard weight), triacylglycerols and diacylglycerols in CIL were about 88% and 11%, respectively; CIL had lower content of monounsaturated disaturated triacylglycerol (USS), and higher content of tirunsaturated triacylglycerol (UUU), monosaturated-diunsaturated triacylglycerol (UUS), and trisaturated triacylglyerol (SSS) than lard. Though lard and CIL had similar solid fat content (SFC) profile, they presented obviously different thermal property. The main crystalline form was changed from β of lard to β′ of CIL, and the crystal aggregates of CIL was more delicate than that of lard, implying the sandiness of lard might be alleviated after modification.

Practical Application: The results could provide a new method for oil modification, such as improving its physiochemical properties.

The following article for this Special Issue was published in an earlier Issue.

F. Tieves and F. Hollmann, “Enzymatic Valorization of Fatty Acids in Oleochemical Synthesis,” European Journal of Lipid Science and Technology 127 (2025): e70000. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejlt.70000. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ejlt.70000