Effective extraction of lutein from a heterotrophic Chlorella USTB-01 using the combination of polar and non-polar solvents

摘要

Extraction of lutein from a newly isolated heterotrophic Chlorella USTB-01 using different organic reagents was investigated. Among polar and non-polar solvents tested, methanol and n-octane were most effective solvents to extract lutein from the microalgal cells, respectively. The maximum extraction efficiencies of lutein was achieved with combinations of miscible ethanol-hexane or methanol-octane, which were approximately three times higher than those obtained using any single solvent. It is suggested that the similarity of carbon and oxygen atom ratio between the combined extracting solvents and lutein be considered, which may be a very important factor in the efficient extraction of lutein from microalgal cells.