Sustainable Extraction of Prospective Cosmetic Ingredients from Colombian Marine Macroalgae Using Natural Deep...

Area of Science:

• Marine Biology
• Phytochemistry
• Green Chemistry

Background:

• Marine macroalgae are rich sources of bioactive compounds with cosmetic applications.
• Efficient extraction methods are crucial for isolating valuable metabolites like phenolic compounds and mycosporine-like amino acids (MAAs).
• Natural Deep Eutectic Solvents (NADESs) offer a sustainable alternative to conventional extraction solvents.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate NADESs as extraction solvents for cosmetically valuable metabolites from marine macroalgae.
• To compare the efficacy of NADESs with water and hydrochloric acid for extracting phenolic compounds and MAAs.
• To characterize the physicochemical properties of prepared NADESs.

Main Methods:

• Collection and processing of 12 marine macroalgae samples from the Colombian Caribbean.
• Preparation and physicochemical characterization (viscosity, surface tension, pH, conductivity) of NADESs.
• Quantification of phenolic compounds using the Folin-Ciocalteau assay and MAAs via HPLC-DAD.
• Comparison of extraction yields using NADESs, water, and 5% hydrochloric acid.

Main Results:

• A betaine:glucose:water (1:1:5 molar ratio) NADES exhibited the highest phenolic compound extraction yield.
• Sargassum cf. ramifolium and Sargassum fluitans showed the highest phenolic content (29.2 and 21.9 mg GAE/g DW, respectively) when extracted with NADES.
• MAAs were successfully detected and identified in several macroalgae samples using ultrasound-assisted extraction and HPLC-DAD.

Conclusions:

• NADESs are a viable and efficient alternative for extracting phenolic compounds and MAAs from marine macroalgae.
• The optimized NADES demonstrated superior performance compared to water for phenolic compound extraction.
• This research highlights the potential of marine macroalgae from the Colombian Caribbean as a source for cosmetic ingredients.