Deuterated 26-hydroxycholesterol prepared from diosgenin by modifications of existing methods permitted the determination of mitochondrial cholesterol 26-hydroxylase using endogenous cholesterol as the substrate. Enzyme activity in a group of Syrian hamsters was found to be 10.3 +/- 3.7 pmol.min-1.mg protein-1.

AIM To confirm the anticancer activity of steroid saponins isolated from the rhizome of Paris polyphylla var. yunnanensis and evaluate the structure-activity relationships of these steroid saponins in vitro and in vivo . MATERIALS AND METHODS Eight known steroid saponins were isolated from the rhizome of Paris polyphylla . The LA795 lung adenocarcinoma cell line from mice was chosen to evalua...

Diosgenin (1a) is used as a raw starting material for the synthesis of steroid hormones and contraceptives probably one most commercially important steroidal sapogenins. The literature on 1a extensive, topics range from its isolation variety natural sources to chemical modifications therapeutic properties an anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, anti-thrombosis, anti-inflammatory, anti-viral agent, among...

Phytochemical and biological screening of root of Asparagus racemosus was studied. The brine shrimp bioassay of its various extracts showed that the methanol (MeOH) extract was biologically active. The column chromatography of hexane, acetone and methanol extracts resulted in the isolation of 9hexadecanoic acid-9-octadecenylester (Z,Z), β-Sitosterol, stigmasterol-3-O-β-D-glucopyranoside and dio...

Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L. seed) is a food with traditional medicinal use in diabetes. Beneficial effects have been demonstrated in diabetic animals and both insulin-dependent and non-insulin-dependent diabetic subjects. Effects of a lipid extract A, crude ethanolic extract B, further sub-fractions of B (saponin-free C, saponin D and sapogenin E) and a gum fibre fraction F on intes...

Dioscorea contains critically important species which can be used as staple foods or sources of bioactive substances, including Dioscorea nipponica, which has been used to develop highly successful drugs to treat cardiovascular disease. Its major active ingredients are thought to be sterol compounds such as diosgenin, which has been called "medicinal gold" because of its valuable properties. Ho...