Antioxidant effects of extra virgin olive oil enriched by myrtle phenolic extracts on iron-mediated lipid peroxidation under intestinal conditions model

•A phospholipid oxidation model was studied and the oxidant type effect was showed.•Myrtle phenolic compounds ability to counteract phospholipid oxidation was reported.•DPPH and ORAC values of enriched EVOO phenolic compounds were evaluated.•Antioxidant capacity improvement of enriched EVOO to counteract phospholipid oxidation.

Chelating and free radicals scavenging activities of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) enriched by Myrtus communis phenolic compounds (McPCs), α-tocopherol and Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) were evaluated using chemical assays, 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and Oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), and biological model as 2,2′-azobis (2-aminopropane) dihydrochloride (AAPH) or Fe+3/Ascorbic acid (Fe+3/AsA) system mediated peroxidation of l-α-phosphatidylcholine aqueous dispersions stabilized by bile salts (BS) under simulated intestinal conditions (pH 7.4). McPC-EEVOO increased significantly the neutralization of DPPH radical and AAPH-derived radicals in ORAC assay more than α-tocopherol and BHT. The phospholipid stability increased by a factor of 33.6%, 34.8%, 19.3% and 10.7% for myrtle microwave assisted extraction (MAE) and conventional extraction (CE) extracts, α-tocopherol and BHT, respectively, as compared to the control (EVOO without enrichment) in Fe+3/AsA system. But a slightly additive effect was observed when AAPH system was used. Our observation showed that McPCs may interact positively with EVOO to inhibit phospholipid peroxidation, and thus, McPC-EEVOO could be a potential functional food.