Extraction of Lycopene from Tomato Paste by Ursodeoxycholic Acid Using the Selective Inclusion Complex Method

摘要

Lycopene, a precursor of β-carotene with well-known antioxidant activity and powerful health properties, can be found in many natural products such as tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum), watermelon, red pepper, and papaya. Many separation methods have been reported for extracting lycopene from its sources. The inclusion complex is an effective method for extraction and purification of organic chemicals. This procedure has 2 main components: host and guest molecules. In this study, lycopene (guest) was extracted from tomato paste by ursodeoxycholic acid, the inclusive agent (host). The molecular structure of the extracted lycopene was then confirmed by ~1HNMR and its purity was evaluated using high-performance liquid chromatography and UV-Vis spectrophotometry methods, in comparison with a standard product. The results indicated that the proposed separation method was very promising and could be used for the extraction and purification of lycopene from tomato paste.