Determination of astaxanthin and astaxanthin esters in the microalgae <Emphasis Type="Italic">Haematococcus pluvialis</Emphasis> by LC-(APCI)MS and characterization of predominant carotenoid isomers by NMR spectroscopy

The oily product ZANTHIN® consists of natural astaxanthin, which is manufactured from the microalgae Haematococcus pluvialis by supercritical CO₂ extraction. An HPLC method was developed to separate all of the components of the complex astaxanthin extract using a C₃₀ column. The separation resulted in different isomers of astaxanthin accompanied by two other carotenoids. The main component consisted of astaxanthin singly esterified with several different fatty acids. C18:3, C18:2, C18:1 and C16:0 were identified as the most commonly occurring fatty acids. Doubly esterified astaxanthin was also found, although in lower concentrations compared to singly esterified astaxanthin. After performing a detailed fatty acid analysis by GC-MS, the peaks from the extract were assigned via HPLC-MS. A trans to cis transmutation of the all-trans compound was performed by thermal treatment in order to obtain an enrichment of cis isomers as the basis for unambiguous identification via NMR experiments. The all-trans as well as the 9- and 13-cis isomers of astaxanthin were characterized in detail by UV/Vis, ¹H, and ¹H,¹H COSY NMR spectroscopy.