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Soybean germ oil inhibits oxidosqualene cyclase in 3T3 fibroblasts

2005; Wiley; Volume: 107; Issue: 10 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1002/ejlt.200401113

1438-9312

Giancarlo Cravotto, Bruna Robaldo, Arianna Binello, Franca Viola, Simonetta Oliaro‐Bosso, Milvio Avogadro,

Phytoestrogen effects and research

Soybean germ oil (SGO) could take an important place among nutraceuticals if the finding were confirmed that a daily intake of SGO helps to maintain a normal level of serum cholesterol. Adapting the rice milling technology to the soybean refining process, we achieved a rapid and efficient separation of soybean bran and cotyledon from the hypocotyle. Our soybean germ was no less than 95% hypocotyle. SGO obtained from it by typical hexane extraction was very rich in tocopherols (total content 4.35 g/kg) and phytosterols (β-sitosterol 57.4%, Δ-7-stigmastenol 20.2%, Δ-7-avenasterol 6.8%, stigmasterol 6.2%, campesterol 5.4%, Δ-7-campesterol 1.2%, Δ-5-avenasterol 0.95%, etc.; total sterols 44.3 g/kg). The most prominent fatty acids were linoleic (56.2%), linolenic (15.5%) and oleic acid (10.6%). Although isoflavones abound in soybean germ (17.7 g/kg), only traces of them passed into the hexane extract (7 mg/kg). In murine 3T3 fibroblasts, SGO was found to reduce the incorporation of [14C]acetate into sterols, by inhibiting oxidosqualene cyclase.