Danivia Endi Santana Souza

This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of microwave-assisted and conventional extraction using ethanol, hexane, and petroleum ether as solvents, and to optimize the process for extracting oil from Moringa oleifera Lam. seeds, with a focus on improving food-grade oil production. Response surface methodology (RSM) was applied to enhance the extraction process of the oil. Central composite rotational design (CCRD) was used to analyze the impact of solid–liquid ratio (x₁), power (x₂), and temperature (x₃) on oil yield. The optimization identified the optimal conditions as a solid/liquid ratio of 1:38, power of 175 W, and temperature of 50 °C, achieving a 42% oil yield. Notably, the microwave-assisted extraction reduced the processing time from 8 h (using conventional Soxhlet extraction) to just 1 h. Conventional extraction with hexane and petroleum ether was also performed for comparison, resulting in similar oil content and fatty acid profiles, predominantly, oleic acid. FTIR analysis confirmed that the microwave-extracted oil contained fatty acids and had similar characteristics to the conventionally extracted oil. Thus, the use of ethanol as a green solvent in the microwave has shown significant improvement in terms of time and energy savings compared to the Soxhlet method with toxic solvents. This study concludes that microwave-assisted extraction with ethanol provides a more energy efficient, environmentally friendly, and time-saving alternative for food-grade oil production, aligning with advancements in food engineering and production.

This work presents a framework for evaluating hybrid nanoflowers using Burkholderia cepacia lipase. It was expanded on previous findings by testing lipase hybrid nanoflowers (hNF-lipase) formation over a wide range of pH values (5–9) and buffer concentrations (10–100 mM). The free enzyme activity was compared with that of hNF-lipase. The analysis, performed by molecular docking, described the effect of lipase interaction with copper ions. The morphological characterization of hNF-lipase was performed using scanning electron microscopy. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy performed the physical–chemical characterization. The results show that all hNF-lipase activity presented values higher than that of the free enzyme. Activity is higher at pH 7.4 and has the highest buffer concentration of 100 mM. Molecular docking analysis has been used to understand the effect of enzyme protonation on hNF-lipase formation and identify the main the main binding sites of the enzyme with copper ions. The hNF-lipase nanostructures show the shape of flowers in their micrographs from pH 6 to 8. The spectra of the nanoflowers present peaks typical of the amide regions I and II, current in lipase, and areas with P–O vibrations, confirming the presence of the phosphate group. Therefore, hNF-lipase is an efficient biocatalyst with increased catalytic activity, good nanostructure formation, and improved stability.