Comprehensive Triacylglycerol Characterization of Oils and Butters of 15 Amazonian Oleaginous Species by ESI‐HRMS/MS and Comparison with Common Edible Oils and Fats

Abstract

AbstractThe Amazon rain forest encompasses an extraordinary source of vegetable oils with many applications, especially for food, pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries. In this work, the main composition of fifteen Amazonian oils and butters are investigated via gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry (GC‐MS) and electrospray ionization high resolution mass spectrometry (ESI‐HRMS). Triacylglycerols (TAG) are characterized by their fragmentation spectra and comparison with the LIPID MAPS database, resulting in a detailed compendium of TAG composition of these samples. Over 70 different TAG are putatively annotated per sample and the occurrence of isomers is remarkable, showing that TAG complexity in these samples is considerably higher than ever reported. The TAG composition of the Amazonian samples are also statistically evaluated using principal component analysis (PCA) for comparison to common edible oils such as soybean, corn, coconut, and olive oil. Some tendencies of grouping are observed: butters with medium chain fatty acids (FA); butters with high oleic FA; and oils with high oleic and high linoleic FA contents. This study provided profiles that ensure Amazonian oils and butters authenticity, quality and also aids in understanding their properties and the best applications for each.Practical Applications: It is expected that this comprehensive set of data on the TAG composition of Amazonian oils and butters will help guide the use and applications of these products, providing consumers with the best benefits from a nutritional perspective. Moreover, adulterations could be more easily detected when a database is available, since the chemical composition of certified samples is investigated in this work. Ultimately, this study can encourage the sustainable production and applications of Amazonian oils and appropriate use of Amazon rain forest resources.