Affiliations 

  • 1 Division of Food Sciences, School of Biosciences, University of Nottingham, Loughborough, LE12 5RD UK
  • 2 Division of Nutritional Sciences, School of BioscienceUniversity of Nottingham Malaysia Campus, Jalan Broga, 43500 Semenyih, Salangor Darul Ehsan Malaysia
  • 3 Division of Nutritional Sciences, School of Biosciences, University of Nottingham, Loughborough, LE12 5RD UK
J Food Sci Technol, 2017 Aug;54(9):2746-2757.
PMID: 28928514 DOI: 10.1007/s13197-017-2711-8

Abstract

A study of the literature indicates that chloroplasts synthesise a range of molecules, many of which have nutritional value for humans, but the nutritional credentials of chloroplasts recovered from plant cells are not established. Chloroplast-rich-fractions (CRFs) were prepared from green plant species and the macro- and micro-nutrient composition compared with the whole leaf materials (WLMs). The results indicated that, on a dry weight basis, CRF material from a range of green biomass was enriched in lipids and proteins, and in a range of micronutrients compared with the WLM. Vitamins E, pro-vitamin A, and lutein were all greater in CRF preparations. Of the minerals, iron was most notably concentrated in CRF. Spinach CRFs possessed the highest α-tocopherol [62 mg 100 g-1, dry weight (DW)], β-carotene (336 mg 100 g-1 DW) and lutein (341 mg 100 g-1 DW) contents, whilst grass CRFs had the highest concentration of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) (69.5 mg g-1). The higher concentrations of α-tocopherol, β-carotene, lutein, ALA and trace minerals (Fe and Mn) in CRFs suggested their potential use as concentrated ingredients in food formulations deficient in these nutrients.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.