A Submerged Fermentation Protocol for production of citrinin-free red Monascus biomass as a Mineral-rich and Proteinaceous but low fat Functional Food
- Summary
- Monascus-fermented rice is sold worldwidely as a functional food or dietary supplement for its cholesterol-lowering metabolite lovastatin, GABA (a hypotensive agent). Commercial sale for Monascus-fermented rice is limited or banned by the frequent detection of citrinin, another Monascus metabolite which is a nephrotoxin and a hepatotoxin. This study reports a novel submerged fermentation system developed to produce pure Monascus biomass which was citrinin-free and contained a rich source of amino acids, fatty acids, minerals and terpenes. The production time was significantly shortened to be less than one week. Besides the desirable bioactive compounds, the produced Monascus biomass was attractively red. Acute and subchronic toxicity assays using ICR mouse model verified that Monascus biomass was safe for consumption as a health food. Also this is the first report that Monascus biomass showed anti-proliferative effect on liver cancer cells via induction of apoptosis (programmed cell death) as revealed by reverse transcriptase – polymerase chain reaction. This Monascus product has improved anti-oxidation property, nutrient rich but low in fat and devoid of citrinin. Also, the possession of lovastatin and GABA make Monascus a natural functional food.
- Application No.
- 04/SCI/180
- Others
- Inventor(s): Professor Siu Wai CHIU, Department of Biology, CUHK
Patent Status: US Patent Pending
- Country/Region
- Hong Kong
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