Extraction of lycopene from tomato sauce with mushrooms (Agaricus brasiliensis), determined by high-performance liquid chromatography.

Lycopene belongs to the subgroup of non-oxygenated carotenoids with antioxidant and anti-carcinogenic properties that are comparatively more powerful than the majority of plasma carotenoids. When foodstuffs containing lycopene are processed, the cell wall breaks down during the thermal process--thus enabling the extraction of lycopene from chromoplasts, improving their bioavailability. Edible mushroom Agaricus brasiliensis stands out given its medicinal properties and antioxidant potential when used to treat heart diseases and to prevent cancer. Given the interest in lycopene-rich foods, the purpose of the present study was to determine the lycopene present in different types of tomato sauce with A. brasiliensis and/or its extract by high-performance liquid chromatography. The type of solvent (dichloromethane, hexane and ethanol) to remove water from the tomato sauce was tested before the extraction of carotenoids. Lycopene determination in tomato sauces, in tomatoes and in the A. brasiliensis extract was carried out via high-performance liquid chromatography. Findings show that when tomato sauce and raw materials underwent heat treatment, the type of treatment did not interfere with carotenoid and lycopene bioavailability--indicating that those sauces have a significant concentration of carotenoids and, in particular, their content in the lycopene proportion compared with total carotenoids.