Quality Assessment of Camellia oleifera Oil Cultivated in Southwest China

Camellia oleifera oil has attracted increasing attention due to its well-balanced composition. In this study, we evaluated the oil content and chemical composition of C. oleifera oil cultivated in southwest China. The results showed that the acid and peroxide values were in line with the optimal quality index of the national standard of China. Oleic acid was the most predominant and important fatty acid, which accounted for 80.34–86.18%. The α-tocopherol, polyphenols and squalene ranged from 112.36 to 410.46 mg/kg oil, 14.22 to 53.63 mg/kg oil and 14.80 to 52.49 mg/kg oil, respectively. Principal component analysis (PCA) results showed that the synthesis score of introduced cultivars (‘Changlin 3’, ‘Changlin 4’ and ‘Changlin 18’) was higher that the local cultivars (‘Chuanya 21’ and ‘Chuanlin 2’). This research demonstrated that the introduced C. oleifera could adapt to the environment and climate of southwest China and large-scale plant of these introduced cultivars. In addition, the C. oleifera oil rich in unsaturated fatty acid has enormous potential to become a kind of functional oil and possesses great prospects for pharmaceutical and industrial applications.

Characterisation of flaxseed cultivars based on NIR diffusion reflectance spectra of whole seeds and derived samples

Discrimination of yellow and brown flaxseed cultivars was made based on diffusion reflectance FT-NIR spectra of whole seeds. The spectra of flaxseed kernels, hulls, defatted flours, and oils were also measured for comparison. Hierarchy cluster analysis (HCA) and principal component analysis (PCA) were used for the discrimination. Multivariate analyses of FT-NIR spectra led to satisfactory discrimination of all flaxseed cultivars of this study mainly according to the nutritionally important fatty acid composition that was confirmed by comparison with the corresponding spectra of flaxseed kernel and oil. By contrast, spectral features of proteins, polysaccharides, and tannins predominated in the FT-NIR spectra of flaxseed hulls and defatted flours.

Influence of lactation stage on lipids and fatty acids profile of artisanal Algerian Camembert-type cheese manufactured with cow’s milk

Stage of lactation (SOL) is a major factor affecting several characteristics of milk such as fatty acids content and composition, protein and main minerals content. These variations may have important quantitative and qualitative consequences on the characteristics of cheese. The aim objective of this study was to analyse the effect of lactation stage on the fat and fatty acids composition of the artisanal camembert type-cheese made from cow’s milk collected in Mostaganem region (Algeria) and provided from three stages of lactation (early, mid and late). In this study and for each stage of lactation, the fat and fatty acid composition of camembert type-cheese were analysedand evaluated. Results showed that the total lipids were related to the stageof lactation (p<0.05), ranging from 14.6% for the 3rd SOL to 23% for the 1stSOL. The fatty acids composition of Camembert-type cheese showed a highpolyunsaturated fatty acids percentage dominated by ω6 and ω3 fatty acidsrepresented by linoleic and α-linolenic acids. Indeed, they recorded maximum values of 2.53% and 0.6% respectively, for the Camembert made withthe milk of the 1st SOL (p<0.05). Concerning monounsaturated fatty acidsclass, oleic acid is found to be the most important fatty acid with a maximumpercentage (26.1%) in Camembert of the 1st SOL (p<0.05). Finally, this studyconcluded that the stage of lactation plays a determining role on the biochemical composition of the camembert type-cheese, particularly on lipidsand essential fatty acids.

Assembly of the complexes of oxidative phosphorylation triggers the remodeling of cardiolipin

Cardiolipin (CL) is a mitochondrial phospholipid with a very specific and functionally important fatty acid composition, generated by tafazzin. However, in vitro tafazzin catalyzes a promiscuous acyl exchange that acquires specificity only in response to perturbations of the physical state of lipids. To identify the process that imposes acyl specificity onto CL remodeling in vivo, we analyzed a series of deletions and knockdowns in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Drosophila melanogaster, including carriers, membrane homeostasis proteins, fission-fusion proteins, cristae-shape controlling and MICOS proteins, and the complexes I–V. Among those, only the complexes of oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) affected the CL composition. Rather than any specific complex, it was the global impairment of the OXPHOS system that altered CL and at the same time shortened its half-life. The knockdown of OXPHOS expression had the same effect on CL as the knockdown of tafazzin in Drosophila flight muscles, including a change in CL composition and the accumulation of monolyso-CL. Thus, the assembly of OXPHOS complexes induces CL remodeling, which, in turn, leads to CL stabilization. We hypothesize that protein crowding in the OXPHOS system imposes packing stress on the lipid bilayer, which is relieved by CL remodeling to form tightly packed lipid–protein complexes.

Rv3723/LucA coordinates fatty acid and cholesterol uptake inMycobacterium tuberculosis

Pathogenic bacteria have evolved highly specialized systems to extract essential nutrients from their hosts andMycobacterium tuberculosis(Mtb) scavenges lipids (cholesterol and fatty acids) to maintain infection in mammals. While the uptake of cholesterol by Mtb is mediated by the Mce4 transporter, the route(s) of uptake of fatty acids remain unknown. Here, we demonstrate that an uncharacterized protein LucA, integrates the assimilation of both cholesterol and fatty acids in Mtb. LucA interacts with subunits of the Mce1 and Mce4 complexes to coordinate the activities of these nutrient transporters. We also demonstrate that Mce1 functions as an important fatty acid transporter in Mtb and we determine that the integration of cholesterol and fatty acid transport by LucA is required for full bacterial virulencein vivo. These data establish that fatty acid and cholesterol assimilation are inexorably linked in Mtb and reveals a key role for LucA in coordinating both transport activities.

Chemical Composition and Antimicrobial Activity of Essential Oils from Centaurea Pannonica and C. Jacea

The chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of the essential oils obtained by hydrodistillation from Centaurea pannonica (Heufel) Simonkai and C. jacea L. (Asteraceae), were investigated. The essential oils were analyzed by GC and GC-MS. Forty five and twenty nine compounds were identified in the two oils, respectively. C. pannonica oil was rich in fatty acids (43.7%), with 9-octadecanoic acid (34.0%) and ( Z,Z)-9,12-octadecadienoic acid (8.6%) as the major compounds. In contrast, the essential oil of C. jacea was dominated by oxygenated sesquiterpenes (43.2%), among which caryophyllene oxide (23.5%) and spathulenol (8.9%) were the major constituents. However, the oil was also characterized by an important fatty acid fraction (15.5%), with 9-octadecanoic acid (8.9%) and hexadecanoic acid (6.6%) being the main components. The antimicrobial activities of the essential oils were evaluated by the microdilution method against three Gram-positive and three Gram-negative bacteria, and one yeast. Both oils exhibited significant antimicrobial activity, especially against Gram-positive bacteria.