The total loss of a-tocopherol in RO after 12 h of frying was an inevitable result, since it represented the only available antioxidant fraction of the oil, whereas that phenomenon was more unexpected in ROPE(1) and ROPE(2), because the occurrence of the PE polyphenols might be expected to have a protective effect on the a-tocopherol content, as other authors have already demonstrated (Artajo et al., 2006; Ninfali et al., 2002).