High-value co-products from plant foods cosmetics and pharmaceuticals

1. High-value co-products from plant
foods: cosmetics and pharmaceuticals
Submitted by
Towkir Ahmed Ove
M.Sc. In Food Science & Nutrition

2. Introduction
The concept of growing crops for health rather than for food is slowly changing plant
biotechnology and medicine. Plant extracts have been widely used as topical applications
for wound healing, anti-ageing and disease treatments.
Examples of these include
 grape seed,
 green tea,
 lemon,
 lavender,
 rosemary,
 soy,
 jojoba,
 aloe vera,
 papaya and many others

3. Three important groups of plant-derived components, namely:
1. plant polysaccharides,
2. phenolic compounds and
3. plant-derived oils.
There are considerable amounts of data that suggest the benefits of such ingredients in
pharmaceutical and/or cosmetic formulations.

4.  Plant-derived polysaccharides
 There is increasing evidence that many polysaccharides of plant origin are responsible
for their bioactive properties.
 A wide range of bioactivities has been identified including anti-tumour activity, anti-
viral activity, anti-bacterial activity, anti-complementary activity, anti-inflammatory
activity, hypoglycaemic activity, anti-coagulatory activity, phagocytotic activity, anti-
thrombotic activity, anti-ulcer activity and wound-healing properties.
 Their use in cosmetics as emollient natural remedies is also common. In general,
products containing plant polysaccharides are capable of relieving dryness and
providing a soothing membrane that covers the human skin.

5.  Selected groups of plant
polysaccharides: sources and bioactivity
 Plant polysaccharides are a complex and heterogeneous group of compounds. They might have
either storage (starch, inuline, glucomannans) or structural (cell wall polysaccharides) functions
within the plant.
Glucomannans (or mannans)
 pectic polysaccharides and glucans are three of the most important groups of plant-derived
polysaccharides that have been associated with different bioactivities.
 Their functional properties, such as the ability to bind water and oil, may also contribute to their
potential application in the cosmetics field.
 A considerable amount of work has been carried out based on the bioactivity of glucomannans
from two interesting plant sources: Aloe vera and Amorphhophallus konjac.
.

6. ‘Acemannan’ from Aloe vera
 The plant contains two separate juice materials, a yellow latex (exudate) and a
transparent mucilaginous gel, extruded from the inner pulp.
 This clear pulp is widely used in various medical, cosmetic and nutraceutical
applications . Many biological activities (including anti-viral, anti-bacterial, laxative and
anti-inflammatory properties, immune stimulation and protection against radiation)
have been attributed to this gel, and in particular, its polysaccharides .
 The action of aloe gel as a moisturizing agent is still a popular concept.
Glucomannan from Amorphophallus konjac
 Konjac glucomannan is a food storage polysaccharide extracted in high yield from the
tubers of Amorphophallus konjac C. Koch.
 In the pharmaceutical area, due to its degradability and gel-forming ability, konjac
glucomannan can be used in drug delivery.
 Regarding cosmetics as a mild scrubbing agent; skin-moisturizing effects; and a quick-
drying disinfecting gel.

7. Pectic polysaccharides
 Pectic substances can be found in relatively large amounts in the cell walls of fruit and
vegetable tissues.
 the anti-ulcer, radical scavenging and immunological activities of pectin-type polymers
from the aqueous extract of the roots of Cochlospermum tinctorium, a plant of
widespread occurrence in the savannah and scrub land of the drier parts of the West
African Region.
Chitin and chitosan
 Chitin is the second most abundant biopolymer on Earth after cellulose; it is available
largely in the exoskeletons of invertebrates, but also in the cell walls of fungi.
 Valuable applications for chitin and chitosan have been reported in many fields such as
chemistry, biotechnology, pharmaceutics and cosmetics.

8.  Natural antioxidants: phenolic
compounds
 Phenolic compounds are the largest group of plant antioxidants, one of the most
important classes of plant chemicals.
 phenolics act against the oxidation of high-density lipoproteins (HDLs). Hence, they
help the body retain important HDLs while helping it get rid of problematic low-
density lipoproteins.
 plant phenolics have also been found to have anti-ulcer, anti-carcinogenic and anti-
mutagenic activities.

9.  Sources and potential applications of
phenolic compounds
Fruits and vegetables
 Flavonoids are present in many fruits and vegetables such as grapes, apples and
onions. Their cardio protective effects stem from the ability to inhibit lipid
peroxidation, chelate redox-active metals and attenuate other processes involving
reactive oxygen species
Beverages
 The findings of many studies using green tea polyphenols as chromo preventive,
natural healing and anti-ageing agents for human skin.
 Wines as natural sources of antioxidants with radical scavenging properties are the
subject of growing interest.
Plant by-products
 Grape skins and seeds contain flavonoids (catechin, epicatechin, procyanidins and
anthocyanins), phenolic acids (gallic and ellagic acids).
 peels from apples, pears, pomegranates, mango and peaches were found to contain
larger amounts of total phenolics than those found in the peeled fruits.

10.  Plant-derived oils
 All plants contain oils or fats, and mainly in their seeds. In most plants storage lipids
are in the form of triglycerides.
 Triglycerides from vegetable oils can be considered as important raw and renewable
materials for the preparation of products useful for foods, pharmaceuticals and
cosmetics.
 Currently, products claiming to be rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are
marketed in many countries of the world.

11.  Sources and applications of plant-
derived oils
Olive oil
 Olive oil has been used to moisturize dry skin, and as a lip balm, shampoo, hand lotion,
soap, massage oil and dandruff treatment.
 When the oil is topically applied after UVB exposure it can effectively reduce UVB-induced
skin tumor.
 There is good evidence that olive oil is protective in cardiovascular diseases, its mechanisms
may involve blood lipids.
Oil from fruit kernels of the Rosaceae family
 Large amounts of seeds from different fruits such as apricots, peaches or cherries are
discarded annually at processing plants.
 Almond oil is highly appreciated, especially in cosmetics. A typical use of this oil is the
application to the skin of neonates during their early stages of life.

12. Jojoba oil-wax
 Jojoba seeds contain about 50% of liquid wax which is mainly used in cosmetic preparations
not only acting as a humectant, but creating a protective film over the skin that keeps in
moisture.
 Screening of the oil revealed that it has significant analgesic, antipyretic, anti-inflammatory,
antioxidant, anti-bacterial and anti-parasitic properties.
Other important plant-derived oils
 Apart from its popular edible fruit, mangoes (Mangifera indica) also contain kernels that
yield a valuable emollient oil rich in oleic and stearic acids, and triglycerides, and is used in
cosmetics.
 Coconut Cocos nucifera (Arecaceae) oil is valued as an emollient and is used as an
ingredient in remedies for skin infections.
 Sunflower seeds from Helianthus annuus (Compositae), contain polyunsaturated fats, rich
in triglycerides of linoleic acid, an essential fatty acid needed by the body to maintain good
skin condition.

13.  Key reasons for exploiting plant-derived
compounds from co-products
The key reasons that support the incorporation of specific plant-derived compounds in
pharmaceutical and cosmetic products are summarized below.
1. Recovery of by-products from the food and food-processing industries:
environmental benefits
 The food and food-processing industry produces considerable amounts of wastes,
residues, effluents and by-products which contain important amounts of potentially
interesting compounds.
2. Preference for natural products versus synthetic compounds: driving force for food,
cosmetics and pharmacological fields
 Growing apprehensiveness about the safety of synthetic commercial antioxidants has
prompted great efforts to screen active and stable antioxidants obtained from natural
sources.

14. 3. Economic aspects of the recovery of highly valued compounds
 The development of new co-products derived from inherently low-value (or poorly
characterized) raw materials might be economically beneficial for the agro-food
industry.
4. Biotechnological advances in the extraction processes
 Currently, many extraction procedures for plant phytochemicals involve the use of
organic solvents.
 Therefore, the utilization of relatively new and safe extraction techniques such as
supercritical fluid extraction (SCFE) might help to solve this problem.

15.  Conclusions
 Although the future of plant-derived co-products holds exciting opportunities for the
food, pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries to create novel and high-value
products, in order to achieve and optimize their exploitation the following research
needs will have to be addressed.

16. Thank You