Lipid Extracts from Caulerpa lentillifera Waste: An Alternative Product in a Circular Economy

Nowadays, a circular economy is one of the main strategies for developing a sustainable economy. The objective of this work was to increase the value of Caulerpa lentillifera waste and use it efficiently as a resource for lipid extraction. A crude lipid yield of approximately 27.69% of the dry weight was obtained under the following optimized conditions that consisted of a three-stage extraction with 15 min/stage using a ratio of 1:10 (w/v) at room temperature. The crude extracts contained a total fatty acids (TFA) content of approximately 58.60% of the weight of the extracts, which consisted of 10 types of fatty acids. The proportion of palmitic acid (16:0) as the main component was above 70% of the TFA content. Moreover, it also contained chlorophylls a and b and carotenoids at approximately 1.77, 0.91, and 0.70 µg/mg of the extract, respectively. The total phenolic and flavonoids content, including 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) and 1,1′- diphenyl-2-picrahydrazyl (ABTS and DPPH, respectively) scavenging activities, showed that the lipid extracts had high potential for antioxidant activity. Moreover, the extracts also demonstrated α-glucosidase inhibitory activity with an IC50 value of 8.97 mg/mL. Thus, this extract could be used as an alternative product in a circular economy for preventing diabetes disease.