Lipidomics as a new approach for the bioprospecting of marine macroalgae — Unraveling the polar lipid and fatty acid composition of Chondrus crispus

Abstract Marine macroalgae, or seaweeds, have been used for direct human consumption, as additives in the food industry, and as fertilizers in agriculture. The fatty acid composition of several species of macroalgae has been extensively studied, considering their nutritional value and for phylogenetic characterization. However, the polar lipid components of macroalgae, which include compounds with important nutraceutical and bioactive properties, are still very poorly studied at the molecular level. Herein, it is reported, for the first time, a lipidomic study on the red seaweed Chondrus crispus , namely its fatty acid and polar lipid composition through hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography — electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HILIC–ESI–MS), as an approach to better understand its valuable properties provided from lipidic components. The main polar lipid groups identified include glycolipids (sulfoquinovosyldiacylglycerols and digalactosyldiacylglycerols), glycosphingolipids bearing ceramide backbones (galactosylceramides), inositolphosphoceramides, glycerophospholipids (phosphatidylcholines, lyso-phosphatidylcholines, phosphatidic acids, phosphatidylglycerols and lyso-phosphatidylglycerols), and betaine lipids, as well as some phytyl derivatives, as chlorophylls and pheophytins. This lipidomic-based approach is envisaged as very promising in the study of algae lipid fingerprint, required to understand algae metabolism, their dependence of environmental conditions, and also for the valorization of macroalgae as edible products and a source of bioactive compounds.