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- Title
Sterols and the phytosterol content in oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.).
- Authors
Gül, Muhammet Kemal; Amar, Samija
- Abstract
Sterols are natural, organic compounds with a molecular nucleus of 17 carbon atoms and a characteristic three-dimensional arrangement of four rings. From the chemical point of view sterols are steroid alcohols and their name is derived from Greek stereos, which mean solid with ending -ol, which is the suffix for alcohols. As essential constituents of cell membranes, they are widely distributed in all eukaryotic organisms. Playing a structural role in cellular membranes, they present a significant part of the organism membrane biomass, while their functional role is evident through the participation in the control of membrane-associated metabolic processes, such as: regulations of membrane permeability and fluidity, signal transduction events and the activity of membrane-bound enzymes. Sterols are the precursors of steroid hormones and bile acids in humans, brassinosteroids - phytohormones in plants and, as the recent identifications of sterol mutants have shown, they are involved in important growth and developmental processes in living organisms. In recent years increased interest in phytosterols lies in their potential to reduce plasma low-density lipoprotein cholesterol level, decreasing coronary mortality and therefore acting as naturally preventive dietary product. In the last decades, more than 40 different sterols were well identified in different cultivars. These sterols are called phytosterols and they are predominantly present in oilseed plants. The phytosterol content range between 1.4 1-15.57 gr/kg oil and this depends to plant species. Oilseed rape is one of the most important oil seed crop in the world. phytosterol content in new oilseed rape varieties rang between 5.13 and 9.79 gr/kg oil.
- Publication
Journal of Cell & Molecular Biology, 2006, Vol 5, Issue 2, p71
- ISSN
1303-3646
- Publication type
Academic Journal