Omega−3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (PUFAs): Emerging Plant and Microbial Sources, Oxidative Stability, Bioavailability, and Health Benefits—A Review
Open accessAbstract
The omega−3 (n−3) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) acid are well known to protect against numerous metabolic disorders. In view of the alarming increase in the incidence of chronic diseases, consumer interest and demand are rapidly increasing for natural dietary sources of n−3 PUFAs. Among the plant sources, seed oils from chia (Salvia hispanica), flax (Linum usitatissimum), and garden cress (Lepidium sativum) are now widely considered to increase α-linolenic acid (ALA) in the diet. Moreover, seed oil of Echium plantagineum, Buglossoides arvensis, and Ribes sp. are widely explored as a source of stearidonic acid (SDA), a more effective source than is ALA for increasing the EPA and DHA status in the body. Further, the oil from microalgae and thraustochytrids can also directly supply EPA and DHA. Thus, these microbial sources are currently used for the commercial production of vegan EPA and DHA. Considering the nutritional and commercial importance of n−3 PUFAs, this review critically discusses the nutritional aspects of commercially exploited sources of n−3 PUFAs from plants, microalgae, macroalgae, and thraustochytrids. Moreover, we discuss issues related to oxidative stability and bioavailability of n−3 PUFAs and future prospects in these areas.
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Chia seeds have been proven to have health benefits such as improved blood lipid profile, hypotensive, hypoglycaemic, antioxidant, antimicrobial, and immunostimulatory effects.
“Chia seeds have been proven to have health benefits such as improved blood lipid profile, hypotensive, hypoglycaemic, antioxidant, antimicrobial, and immunostimulatory effects”
From Nutritional and Functional New Perspectives and Potential Health Benefits of Quinoa and Chia Seeds (2023) · cites this paper as [75]
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References 152 · Cited by 337
- Authors
- Saini, R. K., Prasad, P., Sreedhar, R. V., Akhilender Naidu, K., Shang, X., & Keum, Y.-S.
- Affiliations
- Konkuk University (KR)
- Institute of Biological Chemistry, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164, USA
- Central Food Technological Research Institute (IN)
- Department of Biochemistry, CSIR-Central Food Technological Research Institute (CSIR-CFTRI), Mysuru 570020, India
- Jilin University (CN)
- Corresponding author
- Saini, Ramesh Kumar
- Keum, Young-Soo
- ORCID
- Venue
- Antioxidants
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2021-10-15
- Volume
- 10
- Issue
- 10
- Pages
- 1627
- ISSN
- 2076-3921 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC8533147
- OpenAlex
- W3205202331
- Cited by
- 337
- References
- 152
- Citations by year
- 2026: 73 · 2025: 85 · 2024: 79 · 2023: 72 · 2022: 24 · 2021: 3
- FWCI
- 5.93
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Antioxidants (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Funders
- National Research Foundation of Korea (2019R1G1A1006815)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Fatty Acid Research and Health
- Physical Sciences › Chemistry › Organic Chemistry › Edible Oils Quality and Analysis
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Aquatic Science › Aquaculture Nutrition and Growth
- Keywords
- omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, alpha-linolenic acid, stearidonic acid, seed oil, chia, flaxseed, Lepidium sativum, Echium plantagineum, Buglossoides arvensis, Ribes, microalgae, thraustochytrids, oxidative stability, bioavailability, health benefits
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