Abstract:In this study, a universal method for determining the contents of lycopene and β-carotene in lycopene-containing raw materials and functional foods was established. In general, ordinary samples were dissolved directly in a dichloromethane solution containing 2, 6-di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenol (BHT solution), while the microencapsulated samples were firstly subjected to ultrasonic-assisted extraction with N,N-dimethyl formamide containing 2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenol, and then dissolved and diluted with BHT solution. High performance liquid chromatography was used for identification and analysis, and the separation and quantification of the target compounds were completed in 40 min. Under the experimental conditions, the degree of separation and the linear relationship of lycopene and β-carotene were satisfactory, with corresponding limits of detection being 0.08 μg/mL and 0.09 μg/mL, respectively. The relative standard deviations (RSDs) of lycopene and β-carotene for the ordinary samples were 3.20% and 3.01%, respectively. The RSD of lycopene in microencapsulated samples was 2.37%, and no β-carotene was detected. The recovery rate of lycopene in the two types of samples ranged from 92.65% to 107.49%, and that of β-carotene ranged from 94.73% to 105.12%. This method is stable, accurate, and adaptable, and can be essentially applied to the determination of almost all kinds of lycopene-containing raw materials and functional foods.
