Proteomics of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

Proteins and peptides are minor components of vegetal oils. The presence of these compounds in virgin olive oil was first reported in 2001, but the nature of the olive oil proteome is still a puzzling question for food science researchers. In this project, we have compiled for a first time a comprehensive proteomic dataset of olive fruit and fungal proteins that are present at low but measurable concentrations in a vegetable oil from a crop of great agronomical relevance as olive (Olea europaea L.). Accurate mass nLC-MS data were collected in high definition direct data analysis (HD-DDA) mode using the ion mobility separation step. Protein identification was performed using the Mascot Server v2.2.07 software (Matrix Science) against an ad hoc database made of olive protein entries. Starting from this proteomic record, the impact of these proteins on olive oil stability and quality could be tested. Moreover, the effect of olive oil proteins on human health and their potential use as functional food components could be also evaluated. In addition, this dataset provides a resource for use in further functional comparisons across other vegetable oils, and also expands the proteomic resources to non-model species, thus also allowing further comparative inter-species studies.