Oil palm biomass exploitation for medical use

Abstract: The oil palm industry is the primary producer of biomass in Malaysia. The oil palm industry biomass outputs are the oil palm frond (OPF), oil palm trunk (OPT), palm press fiber (PPF), empty fruit bunches (EFBs), palm kernel cake (PKC), palm oil mill effluent (POME) and decanter cake [1].
The fresh fruit bunch (FFB), EFB, excess fibers, and POME grew by 16%, 14%, 23%, and 14% respectively. The current state of the palm oil industry in Malaysia has described the potential of oil palm biomass in various industries and as a source of green energy. The EFB is generated as a byproduct of crude palm oil production in Malaysia, which poses significant threats to the environment. Oil palm biomass can be commercialized in a wide range of value-added products. The highly fibrous EFB contains 34% cellulose. The cellulose is further converted to nanocrystalline cellulose by eliminating the amorphous cellulose and hemicellulose. The versatile researched derivative of cellulose is carboxymethylcellulose.
Nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) isolated from oil palm empty fruit bunches was incorporated in multifunctional wound dressings with desirable properties (e.g., antioxidant, antimicrobial) that promotes rapid wound healing. The electrospinning technique was used to develop the functionalized lignin-polyethylene glycol (lignin-PEG) synthesized as a potential antioxidant biomaterial for wound dressing. The presence of NCC in the electrospun nanofibers showed excellent in vitro biocompatibility and cell proliferation enhancement, which are important for repairing tissues during the wound healing process (Journal of Biomaterials Research: Part A - in press).
The carboxymethylcellulose from oil palm empty fruit bunch (CM- OPEFBC) was used to develop a drug delivery system to deliver lycopene, which is a water-insoluble drug. The lycopene-loaded nanostructured lipid carrier (NLC) was prepared using CM- OPEFBC, carnauba wax, and palm oil. Presence of wax and oil in the lipid mixture aided in obtaining a small uniform spherical particle size. The NLC provides a better drug loading capacity of an active substance to penetrate easily through the skin after being applied topically. The entrapment efficiency of lycopene was found to be 98%. The lycopene-loaded NLC is a better and more advanced system for the stability and delivery of lycopene in the pharmaceutical industry [2].