Extraction and Purification of Squalene from Amaranthus Grain

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• 作者：Han-Ping He ; Yizhong Cai ; Mei Sun ; and Harold Corke
• 刊名：Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry
• 出版年：2002
• 出版时间：January 16, 2002
• 年：2002
• 卷：50
• 期：2
• 页码：368 - 372
• 全文大小：69K
• 年卷期：v.50,no.2(January 16, 2002)
• ISSN：1520-5118

文摘

Grain amaranth has been suggested as an alternative to marine animals as a natural source ofsqualene. Oil contents, squalene contents, and fatty acid profiles were determined in 11 genotypesof four grain amaranth species. Although the oil contents of grain amaranth were low (from 5.1% inAmaranthus tricolor to 7.7% in Amaranthus cruentus) as compared to other oil-containing grains,high concentrations of squalene were found in total lipids, ranging from 3.6% in Amaranthushypochondriacus to 6.1% in A. tricolor. The major fatty acids in Amaranthus oil consisted of palmiticacid (19.1-23.4%), oleic acid (18.7-38.9%), and linoleic acid (36.7-55.9%). A high degree ofunsaturation was observed in Amaranthus oils, with S/U ratios of 0.26-0.32. A method to isolateand purify the squalene from Amaranthus oil was developed. After the saponification of K112, thesqualene content increased from 4.2% in the crude oil to 43.3% in the unsaponifiables by the removalof the saponifiables. The unsaponifiables were fractionated by silica gel column chromatography toget highly purified squalene. The squalene purity in certain fractions was as high as 98%. Combiningthe fractions rich in squalene gave a 94% squalene concentrate, with a yield of 90%. The structureof squalene in the purified sample was confirmed by comparison of its ultraviolet spectrum with astandard and from its nuclear magnetic resonance spectra.Keywords: Amaranthus; squalene; oil contents; fatty acid; purification; NMR spectra