13

Phytochemicals for Nutraceuticals from the By-product of Palm Oil Refining

Phytochemi cal s for
Nutraceuti cal s from the
By-product of Pal m Oi l
R e f i n i n g
Ab Gapor Md Top*; Wan Hasamudin Wan Hassan* and Mohamad Sulong*
* Malaysian Palm Oil Board,
P.O. Box 10620, 50720 Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia.
PHYTOCHEMICALS,
NUTRACEUTICALS AND
FUNCTIONAL FOODS
Health is an important aspect of
life. Thus, factors that can promote
the maintenance and upgrading of
health are of primary relevance. It
is generally agreed that foods play
a major factor in our health.
Currently, the constituents of plants
- phytochemicals are at the centre
of attraction and research as these
components are associated with the
capacity to provide health
benefits, both in food systems and
in isolated forms. Harborne (1999)
identified the major classes of plant
I N T R O D U C T I O N
The oil palm industry plays an important role in the Malaysian economy in
terms of employment and foreign exchange earnings. As the worlds
largest producer of palm oil, Malaysia contributes more than 50% of
global palm oil production. The palm oil processing industry, involving the
processes of refining and fractionation, alone or in combination, is well
developed in Malaysia. Most of the crude palm oil produced is processed
locally for exports to overseas markets, mainly for foods applications. A
by-product, known as palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD) is generated at the
deacidification-deodorization stage of the refining process. Crude palm oil
contains non-glyceride minor components which have been associated
with health benefits, some of which are distilled off together with the free
fatty acids to become part and parcel of the PFAD. The significance and
potential of nutritionally useful palm-based compounds, falling into the
category of phytochemicals in value-added applications, particularly in
the nutraceuticals industry, has prompted research and development
(R&D) in related areas.
chemicals as terpenoids, phenolic
metabolites, alkoloids and other
nitrogen-containing plant
constituents. Phytosterols,
flavonoids and sulphur containing
compounds represent three groups
of compounds found in fruits and
vegetables, which may be
important in reducing the risk of
atherosclerosis (Howard and
Kritchevsky, 1997). Some
phytochemicals such as ascorbic
acid, carotenoids, vitamin E,
polyphenols, isoflavone and
phytosterols have been highlighted
as physiologically-active ingredients
that help fight certain diseases.
The term nutraceutical was
coined by Dr Stephen DeFelice,
Director of the Foundation for
Innovation in Medicine ( FIM) in
1989. A nutraceutical is any
non-toxic food extract supplement
that has scientifically proven health
benefits for both disease treatment
and prevention (Dillard and
German, 2000). According to
Hasler (2000), functional foods can
be defined as those providing
health benefits beyond basic
nutrition and include whole,
enriched or enhanced foods which
have a potentially beneficial effect
on health when consumed as part
of a varied diet on a regular basis
at effective levels. In Japan, a
related terminology and concept is
foods for specified health uses
(FOSHU). The first FOSHU product
- a hypoallergenic rice was
approved in 1993. According to the
Nutrition Improvement Law,
FOSHUs are defined as foods in the
case of which specified effects
contributing to maintain health can
be expected based on the available
data concerning the relationship
between the foods/food contents
and health, as well as foods with
permitted labelling which indicates
the consumer can expect certain
health effects upon intake of these
particular compounds ( Arai et al.,
2001). The market for
nutraceuticals and other health-
related products is booming in
advanced countries, and Gilmore
(1997) reported that the US
nutraceutical industry was worth
US$ 11 billion, and growing at
12% annually. The nutraceutical
and functional food industries
which involve health-related claims
see p. 17
17
Phytochemicals for Nutraceuticals from the By-product of Palm Oil Refining
are governed by regulations, and in
the case of the United States, the
Nutrition Labelling and Education
Act (NLEA) and Dietary
Supplements Health and Education
Act (DSHEA) are relevant.
FUNCTIONALITY OF
PHYTOCHEMICALS FROM PALM
FATTY ACID DISTILLATE (PFAD)
PFAD is a by-product from the
physical refining of palm oil. Typical
PFAD is composed of free fatty
acids (81.7%), glycerides (14.4%),
squalene (0.8%), vitamin E
(0.5%), sterols (0.4%) and other
substances (2.2%). There is
increasing interest in nutraceuticals
and other related industries that
promote food-derived
phytochemicals as their active
ingredients. Utilization of PFAD as a
source of phytochemicals would
represent a value-addition strategy
for the palm oil industry. Some
components of PFAD, if isolated,
would be useful bioactive
phytochemicals for preparation of
encapsulated products and for
fortification of foods wherever
appropriate, falling into the
category of nutraceuticals or
functional foods. Vitamin E,
phytosterols and squalene are of
particular interest and their
beneficial effects are briefly
highlighted as follows:
Vitamin E (tocopherols and
tocotrienols)
Tocopherols and tocotrienols are
known for their antioxidant
activities in foods and biological
systems (Ab Gapor et al.,1989;
Burton and Traber, 1990). A review
of the therapeutic potential of
tocotrienol indicates that it is
superior to tocopherol in terms of
hypocholesterolemic,
antithrombotic and anti-cancer
effects, suggesting that tocotrienol
may serve as an effective agent in
the prevention and /or treatment of
cardiovascular disease and cancer
(Theriault et al.,1999a, b). The anti-
cancer properties of tocopherols
and tocotrienols have been
confirmed, tocotrienols are better
than tocopherols (Yu et al.,1999;
McIntyre et al., 2000a,b;
Nesaretnam et al., 2000). Black
et al. (2000) reported that palm
tocotrienols protect ApoE +/- mice
from diet-induced atheroma
formation. Palm vitamin E is a
tocotrienols-rich product. Palm
vitamin E was found to be effective
in preventing the loss in bone
mineral density and calcium
content of orchidectomized male
rats (Ima-Nirwana et al., 2000).
Palm vitamin E has an anti-ulcer
property that offers potential
benefits in the prevention of gastric
ulceration ( Nafeeza et al., 2000).
Supplementation with palm vitamin
E can enhance certain immune
parameters in hepatitis B patients
(Wan Ngah et al., 1999).
Phytosterols
The major components of
phytosterols are -sitosterol,
campesterol and stigmasterol.
Several studies have demonstrated
that consumption of phytosterols
reduces cholesterol absorption and
lowers serum total and LDL
cholesterol levels in animals and
humans (e.g. Malini and
Vanithakumari,1990; Jones et
al.,1998; Plat et al., 2000). The use
of phytosterols and their
hydrogenated forms, phytostanols,
as such or as esters, in functional
foods as a cholesterol-lowering
agent has now been well accepted
by consumers. A certain spread in
the market uses stanol ester, a
hydrogenated sterol sourced from
wood pulp as its cholesterol-
lowering agent. Phytosterols may
offer protection from colon, breast
and prostate cancers (Awad and
Fink, 2000). The -sitosterol
showed protective effects in an
experimental system in which the
incidence of large bowel cancer was
reduced from 54% to 33%
(Shamberger, 1984).
Squalene
The content and function of
squalene in oils and fats have been
reviewed (Ab Gapor and Hazrina,
2000). The potential of squalene as
an anti-cancer agent is worth
serious attention. Based on
epidemiological studies in several
Mediterranean populations,
Newmark (1997) suggested that
the high squalene content of olive
oil is a major factor in its cancer risk
reducing effect. Hertzler et al.
(1999) proposed that squalene has
potential as a part of a
chemotherapeutic regiment for
human pancreatic cancer. Smith et
al. (1998) reported that squalene
inhibits chemically-induced lung
tumorigenesis in mice. Squalene is a
natural emollient and thus finds
wide utilization in the cosmetics
industry. The utilization of squalene
in health foods and pharmaceutical
industries has been well
documented.
EXTRACTION OF
PHYTOCHEMICALS
The challenge is to isolate useful
phytochemicals and to deliver them
in concentrated form to the market
for the benefit of the consumers.
Relevant efforts have been
undertaken and progress has been
made.
Research and development on
the methods of recovery of vitamin
E, phytosterols and squalene from
PFAD are an on-going programme.
The technology for the extraction
of palm vitamin E has been
developed (Ab Gapor et al., 1999)
and valuable knowledge on the
production of pure palm vitamin E
at the pilot plant has been gained.
Palm vitamin E has been made
available for nutritional research
and the results have been published
accordingly, and its application as a
hypocholesterolemic agent has
been suggested (Qureshi et al.,
1995).
Methods for the extraction of
phytosterols are investigated, and
the production of phytosterols in
the form of white crystals in the
laboratory have been successful.
Research on the production of
squalene is also in progress and a
pure colourless squalene has been
produced. In order to capitalize on
from p. 13
18
Palm Oil Developments 36
palm-based phytochemicals, more
efforts need to be undertaken.
CONCLUSION
The palm oil industry is blessed with
a by-product (PFAD) which is
relatively rich in bioactive
phytochemicals. The situation
presents a unique opportunity to
utilize PFAD as a source of
phytochemicals for nutraceuticals
and the functional foods industries
which are currently growing rapidly.
Research and development on the
recovery of value-added
phytochemicals have resulted in the
capacity for the preparation of a
pure tocotrienols-rich fraction,
squalene and phytosterols. More
nutritional studies, relevant product
development and marketing efforts
would be useful in the promotion
of palm-based phytochemicals in
the multi-billion dollar
health-related industries.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors would like to thank the
Director-General of MPOB for
permission to publish this paper.
Ms Meriam Hassan, Mahani Rifaeh
and Rahana Mohd Kamal provided
invaluable technical assistance.
REFERENCES
AB GAPOR MD TOP; LEONG, L
W; ONG, A S H; KAWADA, T;
WATANABE, H and TSUCHIYA, N
(1999). Production of high
concentration tocopherols and
tocotrienols from palm oil by-
products. Malaysian patent No.
MY-110779-A.
AB GAPOR MD TOP; ONG, A S H;
KATO, A; WATANABE, H and
KAWADA, T (1989). Antioxidant
activities of palm vitamin E with
special reference to tocotrienols,
Elaeis Vol.1 No. 1: 63-67.
AB GAPOR MD TOP and
HAZRINA ABD RAHMAN ( 2000).
Squalene in oils and fats. Palm Oil
Developments No. 32: 36-40.
ARAI, S; OSAWA, T; OHIGASHI,
H; YOSHIKAWA, M;
KAMINOGAWA, S; WATANABE,
M; OGAWA, T; OKUBO, K;
WATANABE, S; NISHINO, H;
SHINOHARA, K; ESASHI, T and
HIRAHARA, T (2001). A mainstay
of functional food science in Japan
- history, present status and future
outlook. Biosci. Biotechnol.
Biochem., 65 (1):1-13.
AWAD, A B and FINK, C S (2000).
Phytosterols as anticancer dietary
components: evidence and
mechanism of action. J. Nutr., 130:
2127-2130.
BLACK, T M; WANG, P; MAED, A
N and COLEMAN, R A ( 2000).
Palm tocotrienols protect ApoE +/-
mice from diet-induced atheroma
formation. J. Nutr., 130: 2420-
2426.
BURTON, G W and TRABER, M G
(1990). Vitamin E - antioxidant
activity, biokinetics and
bioavailability. Amer. Rev. Nutr.,
10:357-382.
DILLARD, C J and GERMAN, J B
(2000). Phytochemicals:
nutraceuticals and human health.
J. Sci. Food Agric, 80: 1744-1756.
GILMORE, J (1997). Nutraceutucals
booming. Food Ingred Anals
Internat. 15 September.
HARBONE, J B (1999). Classes and
Functions of Secondary Products
from Plants (Walton, J N and
Brown, D E eds.). Imperial College
Press, London, United Kingdom.
p. 1-25.
HASLER, C M ( 2000). The
changing face of functional foods.
J. Am. Coll. Nutri.19(5): 499S-
506S.
HOWARD, B V and KRITCHEVSKY,
D (1997). Phytochemicals and
cardiovascular disease. Circulation,
95: 2591-2593.
HERTZLER, D A; AYOUBI, A S;
NEWMARK, H and CROWELL, P L
(1999). Preclinical chemotherapy of
pancreatic cancer with squalene.
Proc. Amer. Assoc. Cancer Res., 40.
IMA-NIRWANA, S; KIFTIAH, A;
ZAINAL, A G ; NORAZLINA, M; AB
GAPOR MD TOP and KHALID,
B A K ( 2000). Palm vitamin E
prevents osteoporosis in
orchidectomized growing male rats.
Natural Product Sciences, 694:
155-160.
JONES, P J H; NTANIOS, F Y;
RAEINI-SARJAZ, M and
VANSTONE, C A (1998).
Cholesterol-lowering efficacy of a
sitostanol-containing phytosterol
mixture with a prudent diet in
hyperlipidemic men. Am. J. Clin.
Nutr., 69: 1144-1150.
MALINI, M and VANITHA-
KUMARI,G ( 1990). Rat-toxicity
studies with beta-sitosterol. J.
Ethnopharmacology, 28: 221-234.
McINTYRE, B S; BRISKI, K P;
TIRMENSTEIN, M A; FARISS, M W;
AB GAPOR MD TOP and
SYLVESTER, P W (2000a).
Antiproliferative and apoptotic
effects of tocopherols and
tocotrienols on normal mouse
mammary epithelial cells. Lipids,
35(2):171-180.
McINTYRE, B S; BRISKI K, P; AB
GAPOR MD TOP and SYLVESTER,
P W (2000b). Antiproliferative and
apoptotic effects of tocopherols
and tocotrienols on preneoplastic
and neoplastic mouse mammary
epithelial cells. Proc. of the Soc.
for Exp. Biol and Med., 224:292-
301.
NAFEEZA, M I; SYAMSINAZ, S N;
RENUVATHANI, M; AB GAPOR
MD TOP and KAMSIAH, J (2000).
Protection by palm vitamin E
against ethanol gastric injury is
independent of gastric mucus
quantity. Mal. J. Biochem. Mol.
Biol., 5:18-22.
NEWMARK, H L (1997). Squalene,
olive oil and cancer risk: a review
and hypothesis. Cancer
Epidemiology, Biomarkers and
Prevention. p. 1101-1103.
19
Phytochemicals for Nutraceuticals from the By-product of Palm Oil Refining
NESARETNAM, K; DORAISAMY, S
and DARBRE, P D ( 2000).
Tocotrienols inhibit growth of ZR-
75-1 breast cancer cells. Internat.
J. Fd. Sci. Nut., 5: S95-S103.
PLAT, J; KERCKHOFFS, D A and
MENSINK, R P ( 2000). Therapeutic
potential of plant sterols and
stanols. Curr. Opin. Lipidol., 11:
571-576 .
QURESHI, A A; ONG, A S H;
DEWITT, G F; QURESHI, N; AB
GAPOR MD TOP and CHONG, Y
H ( 1995). Tocotrienols from palm
oil. Malaysian patent No. MY-107,
244-A.
SHAMBERGER, R J ( 1984).
Additives and contaminants.
Nutrition and Cancer. Plenum
Press. p. 318.
SMITH, T J; YANG, G Y; SERIL, D
N; LIAN, J and KIM, S ( 1998).
Inhibition of 4-(methyl-
nitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl) -1-
butanone-induced lung
tumorigenesis by dietary olive oil
and squalene. Carcinogenesis,
1994: 703-704.
THERIAULT, A; WANG, Q; AB
GAPOR MD TOP and ADELI, K
(1999a). Effects of gamma-
tocotrienol on ApoB synthesis,
degradation and secretion in
HepG2 cells. Arterioscler. Thromb.
Vasc. Biol.,19: 704-712.
THERIAULT, A; CHAO, J; WANG,
Q; AB GAPOR MD TOP and
ADELI, K (1999b). Tocotrienol: a
review of its therapeutic potential.
Clinical Biochemistry, 32(5): 309-
319.
YU, W; SIMMONS-MENCHACHA,
M; AB GAPOR MD TOP;
SANDERS, B G and KLINE, K
(1999). Induction of apoptosis in
human breast cancer cells by
tocopherols and tocotrienols.
Nutrition and Cancer, 33(1):26-32.
WAN NGAH, W Z; AZIAN, A L;
NARIMAH, A H H; PERMEEN, Y;
NASARUDDIN, A; AB GAPOR MD
TOP; MAZLAN, Z and KHALID BAK
(1999). Palmvitee supplementation
of chronic hepatits B patients and in
vitro studies on cancer cell lines.
Proc. of PORIM International
Palm Oil Congress - Nutrition.
p. 233-240.
19