Improved co-oxidation of beta-carotene to beta-ionone using xanthine oxidase-generated reactive oxygen species in a...

beta-Ionone, an aroma compound exhibiting flower notes, can be obtained from beta-carotene in a cooxidation system utilizing xanthine oxidase-generated reactive oxygen species (ROS). ROS have to be controlled as, although they can give rise to beta-ionone, they may also degrade it. In this work, the biotransformation of beta-carotene into beta-ionone was investigated in systems containing variable proportions of decane to extract beta-ionone before degradation. The use of 50% or 90% decane resulted in increased production yields. Tween 80, which was added to further improve the production, slightly decreased the reactivity of the medium and the extraction of beta-carotene, but increased the extraction of beta-ionone. In total, the addition of Tween 80 significantly improved the yields of conversion, which reached 34% with 50% decane and 2.5 g/L Tween 80 compared to 10% without decane and Tween 80. These results show that it is possible to control a ROS-mediated reaction by the addition of a solvent phase and by modifing the medium composition.