Characterization of oil extracted from wild apricot seeds kernel using submerged alcoholic fermentation and its quality characteristics

The current study investigated the impact of Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation on apricot kernel oil extraction and the resulting quality characteristics of the oil. The seed kernels underwent physicochemical and antioxidant studies after being separated, gelatinized, and fermented. The results revealed 43.6% of oil yield by fermentation. The extracted oil had a lower acid value (3.74 mg KOH/g), and peroxide value (4.25 meq/kg). The investigation of additional oil properties was included, like iodine value (100.26 mg KOH/g), saponification value (190.5 mg KOH/g), specific gravity (0.919), viscosity (4.62), moisture content (0.592%), and refractive index (1.4836), which signifies optimum physicochemical parameters of oil. As per the FTIR data, some distinct functional groups like C-H stretch and C=O, C=C, CH3, OH, and R-O-R esters were found in the extracted oil. The oil's fatty acid composition, with 50.47% saturated, 22.23% mono-unsaturated, and 35.13% polyunsaturated fatty acids, enhances stability, oxidative resistance, and nutritional value, justifying its favorable physicochemical properties. The DPPH radical scavenging activity of the oil showed to have good antioxidant activity. Metabolic modeling of S. cerevisiae provided information about compounds received after fermentation. Hence, it can be concluded that fermentation is a suitable approach to extract apricot seed kernel oil with beneficial properties.