ISBN 978-3-8439-5784-7

978-3-8439-5784-7, Reihe Lebensmittelchemie

Franziska Maria Müller
Furan fatty acids (FuFAs) including unsaturated and non-methylated representatives in selected fresh and processed food samples

275 Seiten, Dissertation Universität Hohenheim Stuttgart-Hohenheim (2026), Softcover, A5

Zusammenfassung / Abstract

Furan fatty acids (FuFAs) are heterocyclic minor fatty acids with impressive antioxidant properties, although they typically contribute only 1E-4%-2% to the total lipids. Structurally, FuFAs are characterized by an α,α´-connected furan moiety, embedded within the fatty acid acyl chain. Naturally occurring FuFAs carry one or two methyl substituents in the β/β`-positions of the furan moiety (di-/monomethylated FuFAs, D-/M-FuFAs), which are decisive for their strong radical scavenging capability. The carboxy group enables the integration of these antioxidants into triacylglycerols or phospholipids, and thus their incorporation into cell membranes. Despite these promising properties, there is still a lack of comprehensive data on the occurrence of D-/M-FuFAs in food.

In contrast, the scarcely described non-methylated FuFAs (N-FuFAs) were considered to be secondary oxidation products. However, quantitative data of the N-FuFAs were not available. Similarly, unsaturated FuFAs (uFuFAs), characterized by an additional double bond in conjugation with the furan moiety have been barely investigated. Their identification is aggravated by low amounts, the presence of isomers and insufficient data on their analytical behaviour.

To improve the availability of data on FuFAs, the analysis methods based on lipid extraction, acid-catalysed transesterification followed by selective enrichment using micro silver-ion chromatography and GC/MS were modified to include N-FuFAs. Then, this method was applied to various non-animal food products, such as white asparagus, fungi, and soybeans, to study the contents, profiles, and changes in processed products. For white asparagus, a rapid GC/MS determination method for FuFA-MEs and a LC-HRMS method for FuFA-containing TAGs were developed.

For structure determination, uFuFAs were strongly enriched by countercurrent separation methods in combination with silver-ion chromatography and subsequently analysed by GC/MS and sophisticated NMR methods.