Saponins Properties Applications and Processing

Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition
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Saponins: Properties, Applications and Processing

zlem Gl-stnda & Giuseppe Mazza
To cite this article: zlem Gl-stnda & Giuseppe Mazza (2007) Saponins: Properties,
Applications and Processing, Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 47:3, 231-258, DOI:
10.1080/10408390600698197
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Date: 14 April 2016, At: 20:54
Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 47:231258 (2007)

C Taylor and Francis Group, LLC
Copyright
ISSN: 1040-8398
DOI: 10.1080/10408390600698197
Saponins: Properties, Applications

and Processing
LU UST
UNDA
and GIUSEPPE MAZZA

OZLEM
GUC
G
Downloaded by [RMIT University Library] at 20:54 14 April 2016
Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Summerland, British Columbia, Canada V0H 1Z0
Saponins are a diverse group of compounds widely distributed in the plant kingdom, which are characterized by their structure
containing a triterpene or steroid aglycone and one or more sugar chains. Consumer demand for natural products coupled
with their physicochemical (surfactant) properties and mounting evidence on their biological activity (such as anticancer
and anticholesterol activity) has led to the emergence of saponins as commercially significant compounds with expanding
applications in food, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical sectors. The realization of their full commercial potential requires
development of new processes/processing strategies to address the processing challenges posed by their complex nature. This
review provides an update on the sources, properties, and applications of saponins with special focus on their extraction
and purification. Also reviewed is the recent literature on the effect of processing on saponin structure/properties and the
extraction and purification of sapogenins.
Keywords
Triterpenes, sapogenins, ginsenosides, health products, surfactants, extraction
INTRODUCTION
Saponins, glycosides widely distributed in the plant kingdom, include a diverse group of compounds characterized by
their structure containing a steroidal or triterpenoid aglycone and
one or more sugar chains. Their structural diversity is reflected
in their physicochemical and biological properties, which are
exploited in a number of traditional (as soaps, fish poison, and
molluscicides) and industrial applications (Price et al., 1987;
Oakenfull, 1981; Fenwick et al., 1991; Hostettmann and
Marston, 1995; Oakenfull and Sidhu, 1989). While plant extracts containing saponins have been widely used in food and
other industrial applications mainly as surface active and foaming agents (San Martin and Briones, 1999); saponins in foods
have traditionally been considered as antinutritional factors
(Thompson, 1993) and in some cases have limited their use due
to their bitter taste (Ridout et al., 1991). Therefore, most of
the earlier research on processing of saponins targeted their removal to facilitate human consumption (Khokhar and Chauhan,
1986; Ridout et al., 1991). However, food and non-food sources
of saponins have come into renewed focus in recent years
Address correspondence to Dr. Giuseppe (Joe) Mazza, Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Box 5000, 4200 Highway 97,
Summerland, British Columbia, Canada V0H 1Z0. E-mail: MazzaG@agr.gc.ca,
mazzag@shaw.ca
due to increasing evidence of their health benefits such as

cholesterol lowering and anticancer properties (Gurfinkel and
Rao, 2003; Kim et al., 2003b). Recent research has established
saponins as the active components in many herbal medicines
(Liu and Henkel, 2002; Alice et al., 1991) and highlighted
their contributions to the health benefits of foods such as soybeans (Kerwin, 2004; Oakenfull, 2001) and garlic (Matsuura,
2001).
The commercial potential of saponins has resulted in the development of new processes/processing strategies and reevaluation of existing technologies (Muir et al., 2002) for their extraction/concentration (Rickert et al., 2004b). The objective of
this review is to provide a timely update on the sources, properties and applications of saponins with special focus on their
extraction and purification.
SOURCES
The presence of saponins has been reported in more than
100 families of plants, and in a few marine sources such as star
fish and sea cucumber (Hostettmann and Marston, 1995). The
steroidal saponins are mainly found in monocotyledons (such
as Agavaceae, Dioscoreaceae and Liliaceae), and triterpene
saponins are predominantly present in dicotyledons (Leguminosae, Araliaceae, Caryophyllaceae) (Sparg et al., 2004). While
the main dietary sources of saponins are legumes (soybeans,
231
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232
(A) AGLYCONES
Triterpene aglycones
30
21
22
11
28
16
Aglycone
Glycyrrhetinic acid
Gypsogenin
Oleanolic acid
Quillaic acid
Soyasapogenol A
Soyasapogenol B
Soyasapogenol E
-OH
3
3
3
3 , 16
3 , 21 , 22 , 24
3 , 22 , 24
3 , 24
=O
11
23
23
-COOH
30
28
28
28
22
24
23
Steroid aglycone
Diosgenin
O
HO
(B) SOYA SAPONINS

Soyasaponin
Soyasapogenol
Structurea
Group A
Aa
A
glc(1 2)gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3)A(22 1)ara(3 1)xyl(2,3,4-tri-O-Acetyl)
Ab
A
glc(1 2)gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3) A(22 1)ara(3 1) glc(2,3,4,6-tetra-O-Acetyl)
Ac
A
rha(1 2)gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3) A(22 1)ara(3 1) glc(2,3,4,6-tetra-O-Acetyl)
Ad
A
glc(1 2)ara(1 2)glcUA(1 3) A(22 1)ara(3 1) glc(2,3,4,6-tetra-O-Acetyl)
Ae
A
gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3) A(22 1)ara(3 1)xyl(2,3,4-tri-O-Acetyl)
Af
A
gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3) A(22 1)ara(3 1) glc(2,3,4,6-tetra-O-Acetyl)
Ag
A
ara(1 2)glcUA(1 3) A(22 1)ara(3 1)xyl(2,3,4-tri-O-Acetyl)
Ah
A
ara(1 2)glcUA(1 3) A(22 1)ara(3 1) glc(2,3,4,6-tetra-O-Acetyl)
Group B
Ba
B
glc(1 2)gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3)B
Bb
B
rha(1 2)gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3)B
Bc
B
rha(1 2)ara(1 2)glcUA(1 3)B
Bb
B
gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3)B
Bc
B
ara(1 2)glcUA(1 3)B
Group E
Bd
E
glc(1 2)gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3)E
Be
E
rha(1 2)gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3)E
DDMP
g
BDDMPb
glc(1 2)gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3)BDDMP
g
BDDMPb
rha(1 2)gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3)BDDMP
a
BDDMPb
rha(1 2)ara(1 2)glcUA(1 3)BDDMP
g
BDDMPb
gal(1 2)glcUA(1 3)BDDMP
a
BDDMPb
ara(1 2)glcUA(1 3)BDDMP
a
glc:D-glucose, ara:L-arabinose, gal:D-galactose, glcUA:D-glucuronic acid, xyl:D-xylose, rha: L-rhamnose
b
BDDMP: DDMP (2,3-dihydro-2,5-dihydroxy-6-methyl-4H-pyran-4-one) attached through an acetal linkage
to the C-22 hydroxyl of soyasapogenol B
Figure 1 Structure of (A) aglycones (Hostettman and Marston, 1995), (B) soyasaponins (Berhow et al., 2002; Gu et al., 2002), (C) ginsenosides (Li et al., 1996),
(D) glycyrrhizic acid (Ong and Len, 2003), and (E) quillaja saponins (Reprinted from Nord and Kenne, 2000, Copyright (2002) with permission from Elsevier).
(Continued)
233
SAPONINS
(C) GINSENOSIDES
O
OH
R2
R1
R3
Ginsenosides
Rb1
Rb2
Rc
Rd
Re
Rf
Rg1
R1
-glc[2
-glc[2
-glc[2
-glc[2
-H
-H
-H
1]glc
1]glc
1]glc
1]glc
R2
-glc[6 1]glc
-glc[6 1]ara(p)
-glc[6 1]ara(f)
-glc
-glc
-H
-glc
R3
-H
-H
-H
-H
-O-glc[2 1]rha
-O-glc[2 1]glc
-O-glc
glc: D-glucose, ara(p): L-arabinopyranose, ara(f): L-arabinofuranose, rha: L-rhamnose
(D) GLYCYRRHIZIC ACID (GLYCYRRHIZIN)

COOH
GlcUAGlcUAO
Figure 1
chickpeas, mungbeans, peanuts, broad beans, kidney beans,

lentils), they are also present in oats, allium species (leek, garlic),
asparagus, tea, spinach, sugarbeet, and yam (Price et al., 1987).
Soap bark tree (Quillaja saponaria), fenugreek (Trigonella
foenum-graceum), alfalfa (Medicago sativa), horse chestnut
(Aesculus hippocastanum), licorice (Glycyrrhiza species such as
Glycyrrhiza glabra), soapwort (Saponaria officinalis), Mojave
yucca (Yucca schidigera), gypsophila genus (such as Gypsophila
paniculata), sarsaparilla (Smilax regelii and other closely related species of Smilax genus) and ginseng (Panax genus) are
the main non-food sources of saponins used in health and industrial applications (Hostettmann and Marston, 1995; Balandrin,
1996).
(Continued)
A single plant species may contain a complex mixture of

saponins. For example, the characterized soybean saponins include three groups of compounds: soyasaponins A, B and E
categorized according to the soyasapogenol in their structure
(Figure 1B). Similarly ginseng contains a mixture of saponins
(ginsenosides), the main components of which are Rb1 , Rb2, Rc,
Rd, Re, Rf, and Rg1 (Figure 1C). Commonly used plant sources
and their main saponins are presented in Table 1.
The saponin content of plant materials is affected by the plant
species, genetic origin, the part of the plant being examined, the
environmental and agronomic factors associated with growth
of the plant, and post-harvest treatments such as storage and
processing (Fenwick et al., 1991) (Table 2).
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Figure 1
(Continued)
STRUCTURE AND PROPERTIES
Properties
Structure
Physicochemical Properties
Saponins are glycosides containing one or more sugar chains

on a triterpene or steroid aglycone backbone also called a
sapogenin (Figure 1). They are categorized according to the
number of sugar chains in their structure as mono, di-, or
tridesmosidic. Monodesmosidic saponins have a single sugar
chain, normally attached at C-3. Bidesmosidic saponins have
two sugar chains, often with one attached through an ether
linkage at C-3 and one attached through an ester linkage at
C-28 (triterpene saponins) or an ether linkage at C-26 (furastanol saponins). The most common monosaccharides include:
D-glucose (Glc), D-galactose (Gal), D-glucuronic acid (GlcA),
D-galacturonic acid (GalA), L-rhamnose (Rha), L-arabinose
(Ara), D-xylose (Xyl), and D-fucose (Fuc). The nature of the
aglycone and the functional groups on the aglycone backbone
and number and nature of the sugars can vary greatly resulting
in a very diverse group of compounds (Figure 1; Price et al.,
1987; Hostettmann and Marston, 1995).
The structural complexity of saponins results in a number

of physical, chemical, and biological properties, only a few of
which are common to all members of this diverse group. Properties of a few selected aglycones and saponins are summarized
in Table 3.
Due to the presence of a lipid-soluble aglycone and watersoluble sugar chain(s) in their structure (amphiphilic nature),
saponins are surface active compounds with detergent, wetting, emulsifying, and foaming properties (Wang et al., 2005;
Sarnthein-Graf and La Mesa, 2004; Mitra and Dungan, 1997;
Ibanoglu and Ibanoglu, 2000). In aqueous solutions surfactants form micelles above a critical concentration called critical micelle concentration (cmc). Saponins, including soybean
saponins, saponins from Saponaria officinalis, and Quillaja
saponaria, form micelles in aqueous solutions, the size and
structure of which are dependent on type of saponin (Oakenfull, 1986). The micelle forming properties (cmc and the aggregation number (number of monomers in a micelle)) of quillaja
235
SAPONINS
Table 1
Selected plant sources and their constituent saponins
Source
Aglycone
Soybean
Saponin
Soyasapogenol A
Acetyl soyasaponins A1 (Ab), A2 (Af),

A3 , A4 (Aa), A5 (Ae), A6 , Ac , Ad
Soyasaponin DDMPa conjugated
I (Bb) g
II (Bc) a
III (Bb ) g
IV (Bc ) a
V (Ba) g
Soyasaponin Be, Bd
DDMPa conjugated saponins
QS 1-22, S1-12
Soyasapogenol B
Chickpea
Quillaja
Soyasapogenol E
Soyasapogenol B
Quillaic acid
Horse chestnut
Protoescigenin, barringtogenol C
Alfalfa
Medicagenic acid
Hederagenin
Soyasapogenol B, E
Zanhic acid
Glycyrrhetic acid
20(s)-protopanaxadiol
20(s)-protopanaxatriol
Phytolaccagenic acid
Oleanolic acid
Hederagenin
Nuategenin
Diosgenin
Diosgenin, yamogenin, tigogenin,
neotigogenin, yuccagenin,
lilagenin, gitogenin, neogitogenin,
smilagenin, sarsasapoenin
Licorice
Ginseng
Quinoa
Oat
Yam (Dioscoera species)
Fenugreek
Aescin (escin): -aescin, cryptoaescine,

-aescine
I-XV
XVI-XIX
XX- XXVI
XXV-XXVI
Glycyrrhizic acidb
Ra13 , Rb13 , Rc, Rc2 , Rd, Rd2 , Rh2
Re2 , Re3 , Rf, Rg1 , Rg2 , Rh1
Quinoa saponins
Avenacoside A, B
Dioscin
Trigofoenoside A-G, Trigonelloside B
(C)
Reference
Yoshiki et al., 1998

Kerem et al., 2005; Price et al., 1988
Kensil and Marciani, 1991; Nord and Kenne,
2000
World Health Organization, 2001
Oleszek, 1995
Oleszek, 1995
Oleszek, 1995
Oleszek, 1995
World Health Organization, 1999a
World Health Organization, 1999b
World Health Organization, 1999b
Mizui et al., 1990
Onning
et al., 1994
Hostettmann and Marston, 1995
Sauvaire et al., 1995
a 2,3-dihydro-2,5-dihydroxy-6-methyl-4H-pyran-4-one.
b Synonyms:
glycyrrhizin, glycyrrhizinic acid.
saponins were affected by temperature, salt concentration, and

pH of the aqueous phase (Mitra and Dungan, 1997). At 25 C, the
values of cmc of quillaja saponins were in the range of 0.5 and
0.8 g/L. It increased with temperature and pH but decreased with
increasing salt concentration. The incorporation of cholesterol
Table 2
Saponin content of some selected plant materials
Source
Saponin content (%)
Soybean
Chickpea
Green pea
Quillaja bark
Yucca
Fenugreek
Alfalfa
Licorice root
American ginseng
(P. quinquefolium L).
Young leaves
Mature leaves
Roots (4 year old)
Oat
Horse chest nut
Sugar beet leaves
Quinoa
0.220.47
0.23
0.184.2
910
10
46
0.141.71
22.232.3
Fenwick et al., 1991

Price et al., 1987
San Martin and Briones, 1999
Oleszek et al., 2001
Sauvaire et al., 2000
1.422.64
4.145.58
2.443.88
0.10.13
36
5.8
0.142.3
Li et al., 1996
Li et al., 1996
Li et al., 1996
Price et al., 1987
Price et al., 1987
Price et al., 1987
Reference
into the saponin micelles increased their cmc, size, viscosity, and
the aggregation number (Mitra and Dungan, 2000) resulting in
the solubility enhancement of cholesterol as much as a factor of
103 at room temperature (Mitra and Dungan, 2001).
Quillaja saponins also had a solubilizing effect on phenantherene, and fluoranthene, which increases linearly with saponin
concentration at values higher than cmc (Soeder et al., 1996). A
similar linear relationship has been observed between the concentration of the saponin extract from Sapindus mukurossi and
aqueous solubility of hexachlorobenzene and naphthalene up to
a surfactant concentration of 10% (Kommalapati et al., 1997;
Roy et al., 1997).
Solubility enhancement has also been observed for Yellow
OB (Nakayama et al., 1986), and progesterone (Nakayama et al.,
1986) in the presence of bidesmoside saponins from Sapindus
mukurossi, and for -tocopherol, and oleanolic acid in the presence of glucoside and glucuronide esters of glycyrrhizic acid
(Sasaki et al., 1988). Purified saponins and saponin mixtures
resulted in both enhancements and reductions in water solubility
of test compounds quercetin (Schopke and Bartlakowski, 1997),
digitoxin (Walthelm et al., 2001), rutin (Walthelm et al., 2001),
and aesculin (Walthelm et al., 2001), the extent of which was
determined by concentration of saponin and the model compound. Solubility enhancement of quercetin obtained by pure
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236
Table 3
Physical properties of some selected aglycones and saponins (Adapted from Budavari et al., 1996; Biran and Baykut, 1975)
Compound
Formula
Aglycone
Oleanolic acid
C30 H48 O3
Quillaic acid
C30 H46 O5
Diosgenin
C27 H42 O3
Glycyrrhetic acid
C30 H46 O4
Solubility
Source
MW
MP
Insoluble in water, sol in 65 parts ether,

106 parts 95% alcohol, 35 parts boiling
95% alcohol, 118 parts chloroform,
180 parts acetone, 235 parts methanol.
Soluble in alcohol, ether, acetone, ethyl
acetate, glacial acetic acid
Soluble in the usual organic solvents, in
acetic acid
Quinoa
457
310
Quillaja
487
292293
Dioscorea, fenugreek,
yam
415
204207
Licorice
471
298300
Licorice
823
Saponin
Glycyrrhizic acid
(Glycyrrhizin)
Escin
-escin
C42 H62 O16
Horse chestnut
-escin
Gypsophia saponin
Freely soluble in hot water, alcohol,

practically insoluble in ether
C35 H61 O24
Very soluble in water and methanol, only

slightly soluble in acetone, insoluble in
ether and hydrocarbons
Readily soluble in methanol, slightly
soluble in acetone, practically
insoluble (very little solubility) in
water, insoluble in ether and
hydrocarbons
Soluble in water (0.5147 g/100 mL
at 25 C)
saponins at concentrations > cmc values can be attributed to

micellar solubilization, whereas solubilization effect of some
saponin mixtures at concentrations < cmc points to an alternative mechanism (Schopke and Bartlakowski, 1997).
Purified saponins or saponin mixtures may also have a
solubilizing effect on other saponins. Solubility enhancement
of monodesmosides (such as monodesmosides of Sapindus
mukurossi (Nakayama et al., 1986; Kimata et al., 1983), Bupleuri radix (saikosaponins) (Kimata et al., 1985; Morita et al.,
1986; Watanabe et al., 1988) and soyasaponins Bb, Bb and B-G
(Shimoyamada et al., 1993)), which have very low water solubility, in the presence of bidesmoside saponins is well documented.
The extent of the enhancement is dependent on the structure of
the monodesmoside saponin, and the composition/concentration
of the saponin bidesmosides. Solubility of Sapindus mukurossi
monodesmosides was enhanced in the presence of mukurossi
bidesmoside saponins containing hederagenin (Y1, Y2, X)
(Nakayama et al., 1986; Kimata et al., 1983). However,
mukurossi bidesmosides did not affect the solubility of saikosaponins (Kimata et al., 1985), which was enhanced by oleanolic
acid bidesmosides with a glucuronide moiety such as ginsenosides (chikusetsusaponin-V (ginsenoside Ro) and IV) (Kimata
et al., 1985; Watanabe et al., 1988), Hemsleya macrosperma (cucurbitaceae) bidesmosides (Ma2 and Ma3) (Morita et al., 1986),
and cyclic bidesmoside tubeimoside I isolated from tubers of
Bolbostemma paniculatum Franquet (Kasai et al., 1986b).
The solubility of saikosaponin-a in water at 37 C (0.14
mg /mL) increased with concentration of ginsenosi de Ro
reaching a value of 4.08 mg/mL at a bidesmoside concentration
225227
222223
Gypsophia
863
221227
of 1.4 mg/mL (Kimata et al., 1985). A significant decrease in

the solubilizing effect on saikosaponin-a was observed upon
methylation or reduction of the glucuronide carboxyl group of
ginsenoside-Ro indicating the role of the glucuronide moiety in
the observed effect (Tanaka, 1987). A greater extent of enhancement was obtained for Hemsleya macrosperma (cucurbitaceae)
bidesmosides Ma2 and Ma3, which are structurally similar to
ginsenoside Ro with similar cmc values, at a concentration of
0.1% resulting in saikosaponin-a solubilities of 58.7 mg/mL
compared to 3.4 mg/mL for ginsenoside Ro (Morita et al.,
1986). The solubility enhancement of saikosaponin-a became
apparent near the cmc of these bidesmosides (Kimata et al.,
1985; Morita et al., 1986; Nakayama et al., 1986).
The solubility of diene saponin saikosaponin-b1 produced by
heating or mild-acid treatment of saikosaponin-a was increased
by malonyl-ginsenosides and to a lesser extent by ginsenoside
Ro (Zhou et al., 1991). The effect of malonyl-ginsenosides on
saikosaponin-a has also been demonstrated (Zhou et al., 1991).
While neutral dammarane ginsenosides did not have a solubilizing effect on saikosaponins by themselves, they enhanced the
solubilizing effect of ginsenoside Ro (Watanabe et al., 1988) and
dammarane ginsenosides (Zhou et al., 1991).
Solubility enhancement of saikosaponin-a has also been observed in the presence of glycyrrhizic acid, which is the glucuronide monodesmoside saponin of licorice (Sasaki et al.,
1988). The decrease in the degree of enhancement observed
at high glycyrrhizic acid concentrations was attributed to the
increase in solution viscosity (Sasaki et al., 1988). A solubilizing effect was also observed for the 30--glucoside (isolated
SAPONINS
from licorice roots) and glucuronide esters of glycyrrhizic

acid at higher concentrations (Sasaki et al., 1988). In addition to bidesmosides, co-occuring compounds such as acyclic
sesquiterpene oligoglycosides have also been shown to have a
solubilizing effect on monodesmosides of Sapindus mukurossi
(Kasai et al., 1986a) and Sapindus delavayi (Wong et al., 1991).
Solubility enhancement may have important implications for
the bioactivity and processing of saponins. Monodesmosides,
while poorly soluble in water in purified form, can be extracted
readily due to the solubilizing effect of co-occuring compounds
(Kimata et al., 1983). Micellar solubilization by saponins can be
exploited for the development of micellar extraction processes
or to affect the solubilization of ingredients in cosmetic, pharmaceutical or food formulations (Shirakawa et al., 1986).
Solubility of saponins is also affected by the properties of
the solvent (as affected by temperature, composition, and pH).
While water, alcohols (methanol, ethanol) and aqueous alcohols
are the most common extraction solvents for saponins, solubility of some saponins in ether, chloroform, benzene, ethyl acetate, or glacial acetic acid has also been reported (Hostettmann
and Marston, 1995). In the ethanol concentration range of
30100%, solubility of soyasaponin Bb (soyasaponin I) was
maximum in 60% ethanol (Shimoyamada et al., 1993). Solubility of gypsophia saponin in water increased with temperature
from 7.4 g/100 mL at 30 C to 18.0 g/100 mL at 70 C (Biran and
Baykut, 1975). A sharp increase was observed in the solubility
of soyasaponin Bb, which was very low in the acidic region,
in the pH range 6.57.3 (Shimoyamada et al., 1993). The degree of partitioning of components of crude 70% ethanol extract
of soybeans between water and butanol was dependent on the
concentration of the extract and pH of the aqueous phase (Shimoyamada et al., 1995). The highest recovery of soyasaponin I in
the butanol layer was obtained using 0.04 g/mL of crude extract
in the acidic region (about pH 4) (Shimoyamada et al., 1995).
While bitterness is the most common sensory attribute associated with saponins (Price et al., 1985), the occurrence of sweet
saponins is also well known (Kennelly et al., 1996). For example,
the sweetness of licorice is attributed to its main saponin, glycyrrhizic acid (Figure 1), which is 50 times sweeter than sugar
(Muller and Morris, 1966).
The complex structure of saponins may undergo chemical transformations during storage or processing which in turn
may modify their properties/activity. The glycosidic bond (between the sugar chain and the aglycone), and the interglycosidic
bonds between the sugar residues can undergo hydrolysis in
the presence of acids/alkali, due to hydrothermolysis (heating
in presence of water) or enzymatic/microbial activity resulting
in the formation of aglycones, prosapogenins, sugar residues
or monosaccharides depending on the hydrolysis method and
conditions (Hostettmann and Marston, 1995). Complete acid
hydrolysis yields the constituent aglycone and monosaccharides, whereas under basic hydrolysis conditions, cleavage of
O-acylglycosidic sugar chains results in the formation of prosapogenins (Hostettmann and Marston, 1995). The solubility
behavior of the parent aglycone can be markedly different
237
than the saponin due to its lipophilic nature (Table 3). DDMP
(2,3-dihydro-2,5-dihydroxy-6-methyl-4H-pyran-4-one) conjugated saponins, which were determined to be the genuine
saponins in intact soybeans, are hydrolyzed into Group B and
E saponins upon heating, in alkaline solutions, and in the presence of iron (Kudou et al., 1993; Okubo and Yoshiki, 1995).
Soyasaponin g, which was stable in acidic solution and at temperatures < 90 C, was converted into soyasaponin Bb at basic
pH and upon heating at 90100 C (Okubo and Yoshiki, 1995).
In the presence of FeCl3 , it was degraded into soyasaponin Be
and Bb in a ratio of 3:2 (Okubo and Yoshiki, 1995). Deacylation of quillaja saponins was observed upon storage in aqueous
solution at pH > 6 (Okubo and Yoshiki, 1995).
The interaction of sterols (Gestetner et al., 1971, 1972; Walter
et al., 1954; Shany et al., 1970), minerals (West et al., 1978), and
proteins (Potter et al., 1993; Tanaka et al., 1995) with saponins
may result in the modification of the physicochemical properties
and biological activity of these compounds. Steroid saponins
(such as digitonin (Gestetner et al., 1972), alfalfa saponins
(Walter et al., 1954)), and triterpenoid saponins (such as lucerne
(Gestetner et al., 1971, 1972; Shany et al., 1970)) form waterinsoluble addition products with cholesterol and phytosterols
such as sitosterol and stigmasterol. Interaction of sterols and
lucerne saponins was dependent on the structure of the saponin
and sterols (Gestetner et al., 1971, 1972). While cholesterol and
-sitosterol formed complexes with lucerne saponins containing medicagenic acid, which possess carboxyl groups at C23 and
C28 positions, saponins with soyasapogenol aglycones did not
precipitate (Gestetner et al., 1971). Insoluble complexes were
also formed between ammoniated glycyrrhizic acid and alfalfa
root saponins and the minerals zinc and iron (West et al., 1978).
The nature and effect of the saponin-protein interaction were
dependent on the type of protein (Potter et al., 1993) and the
type of the saponin mixture (Tanaka et al., 1995). Upon heating
at 78 C (upto 26 min) quillaja saponin interacted with casein to
form high molecular weight complexes, whereas soybean proteins formed insoluble aggregates independent of saponin addition (Potter et al., 1993). Similarly, while heating salt soluble
proteins from walleye pollack meat at 40100 C for upto 10 min
in the presence of quillaja saponins increased protein aggregation, tea seed saponins inhibited the aggregation of the protein
(Tanaka et al., 1995). Complex formation between beet saponin
and protein (as evidenced by turbidity and interfacial tension
measurements) and destabilization of a model dispersion of sucrose, oil, saponin, and protein in acidic conditions point to the
role of beet saponin and protein in the formation of acid beverage
floc in sucrose-sweetened carbonated soft drinks and acidified
syrups (Morton and Murray, 2001).
The interaction of saponins and proteins also resulted in modifications of protein properties such as heat and enzyme stability
(Ikedo et al., 1996; Shimoyamada et al., 1998), and surface properties (Chauhan et al., 1999). Heat stability of bovine serum albumin (BSA) (Ikedo et al., 1996), and resistance of BSA (Ikedo
et al., 1996) and soybean protein (Shimoyamada et al., 1998)
to chymotryptic hydrolyses improved upon addition of soybean
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saponins. The stability of whey proteins to chymotryptic hydrolyses however decreased upon addition of soybean saponins
(Shimoyamada et al., 2000). Similarly, unlike soybean protein
whose sensitivity to tryptic hydrolysis improved, whey proteins showed higher sensitivity in the presence of soya saponins
(Shimoyamada et al., 2000). The influence of soybean saponin
on the trypsin hydrolysis of bovine milk -lactalbumin was attributed to the modification of the proteins tertiary structure
(Shimoyamada et al., 2005). Desaponization of quinoa protein
increased water hydration capacity and lowered the fat binding
and buffer capacity, and total nitrogen solubility (Chauhan et al.,
1999). Removal of saponins reduced the emulsion and foaming
capacity of the proteins but increased the stability of the foams
and emulsions (Chauhan et al., 1999).
Biological Activity
Saponins have been reported to possess a wide range of biological activities, which are summarized and listed alphabetically in Table 4 (Hostettmann and Marston, 1995; LacailleDubois and Wagner, 1996; Milgate and Roberts, 1995; Francis
et al., 2002). While crude isolates, extracts, and saponincontaining plants have been utilized in the investigation of biological activity, especially in the earlier studies, developments
in the isolation/purification and characterization techniques have
enabled the investigation of the bioactivity of well characterized
saponins and led to the emergence of structure and bioactivity
relationships (Oda et al., 2000; Gurfinkel and Rao, 2003).
The ability of saponins to swell and rupture erythrocytes causing a release of haemoglobin (the in vitro haemolytic activity)
has been one of the most investigated properties of saponins
(Oda et al., 2000). However, even for this activity, which has
been related to the saponin structure (type of aglycone and the
presence of sugar side chains), there is no apparent consistency
between members of this diverse group (Oda et al., 2000).
The toxicity of saponins to insects (insecticidal activity), parasite worms (anthelmintic activity), molluscs (molluscicidal),
and fish (piscidal activity) and their antifungal, antiviral, and
antibacterial activity are well documented (Lacaille-Dubois and
Wagner, 1996; Milgate and Roberts, 1995; Francis et al., 2002).
Toxicity of saponins to warm blooded animals is dependent on
the method of administration, source, composition, and concentration of the saponin mixture (George, 1965; Oakenfull
and Sidhu, 1990). While they show toxicity when given intravenously, their toxicity is much lower when administered
orally which has been attributed to their low absorption and
the much reduced haemolytic activity in the presence of plasma
constituents (Fenwick et al., 1991; George, 1965; Oakenfull and
Sidhu, 1990). The results of in vivo studies with rats (Yoshikoshi
et al., 1995; Gestetner et al., 1968), mice (Gestetner et al., 1968),
and rabbits (Gestetner et al., 1968) suggested that saponins are
not absorbed in the alimentary channel but hydrolyzed to sapogenins by enzymatic action. A study on the bioavailability of
soyasaponins in humans showed that ingested soyasaponins had
low absorbability in human intestinal cells and seem to be metab-
Table 4 Reported biological activities of saponins

(Hostettmann and Marston, 1995; Lacaille-Dubois and
Wagner, 1996; Milgate and Roberts, 1995; Francis et al.,
2002)
Biological Activity
Adaptogenic
Adjuvant
Analgesic activity
Antiallergic
Antiedematous
Antiexudative
Antifeedant
Antifungal
Antigenotoxic
Antihepatotoxic inhibitory effect on ethanol absorption
Anti-inflammatory
Antimicrobial
Antimutagenic
Antiobesity
Antioxidant
Antiparasitic
Antiphlogistic
Antiprotozoal
Antipsoriatic
Antipyretic
Antispasmodic
Antithrombotic (effect on blood coagulability)
Antitussive (relieving or preventing cough)
Antiulcer
Antiviral
Chemopreventive
Cytotoxic
Diuretic
Effect on absorption of minerals and vitamins
Effect on animal growth (growth impairment), reproduction
Effect on cognitive behavior
Effect on ethanol induced amnesia
Effect on morphine/nicotine induced hyperactivity
Effects on ruminal fermentation
Expectorant
Haemolytic
Hepaprotective
Hypocholesterolemic
Hypoglemic
Immunostimulatory effects
Increase permeability of intestinal mucosa cells
Inhibit active nutrient transport
Molluscicidal
Neuroprotective
Reduction in fat absorption
Reduction in ruminal ammonia concentrations
Reductions in stillbirths in swine
Ruminant bloat
Sedative
olized to soyasapogenol B by human intestinal microorganisms

in vivo and excreted in the feces (Hu et al., 2004).
The safety of saponins of commonly used food and feedstuffs
such as soybeans (Ishaaya et al., 1969), and alfalfa (Malinow
et al., 1981) has been established by animal toxicology studies.
The safety of saponins (such as glycyrrhizic acid) or saponincontaining extracts (such as quillaja extracts) that are used as
SAPONINS
Table 5 Lethality of quillaja saponins to CD-1
mice (Kensil and Marciani, 1991)
Dose (g)
Quil-A
QS-7
QS-18
QS-21
125
250
500
1/5
2/5
4/5
0/5
0/5
0/5
4/5
5/5
5/5
0/5
0/5
1/5
Results are expressed as number of deaths per group

of five mice within 72 h after intradermal injection
of saponins.
food additives has been the subject of thorough reviews (Joint

FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives, 2004, 2005a;
Eastwood et al., 2005). Toxicological recommendations for glycyrrhizic acid are based on its effect of increasing mineralocorticoid activity, which in turn results in electrolyte imbalance due to
sodium retention and potassium excretion, and water retention.
This effect though reversible can lead to elevated blood pressure if sustained (Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food
Additives, 2005a). Safety evaluation of quillaja extracts takes
into consideration the chemical composition of the extracts (such
as saponin content, qualitative, and quantitative information on
non-saponin constituents) (Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives, 2004). Quillaja extracts are classified
as type 1 and type 2 based on their saponin content, 2026%
and 7590% respectively (Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee
on Food Additives, 2004), and Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI)
values are based on the saponin content of the extracts (Joint
FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives, 2005b). Purification of a saponin extract may result in production of highly
potent saponin fractions with varying degrees of toxicities as
observed for quillaja saponins (QS-7, QS-18, and QS-21) produced by the purification of an aqueous quillaja extract (Quil-A)
(Table 5) (Kensil and Marciani, 1991).
Saponins can impact the immune system through their adjuvant activity, their ability to improve effectiveness of orally
administered vaccines by facilitating the absorption of large
molecules, and their immunostimulatory effects (Cheeke, 1999).
The ability of saponins to act as immunological adjuvants by
enhancing the immune response to antigens has been recognized since 1940s (Bomford et al., 1992; Francis et al., 2002).
In addition to quillaja saponins, which have been almost exclusively used in the production of saponin adjuvants (Bomford
et al., 1992), adjuvant activity of soyasaponins, lablabosides, jujubosides, quinoa, gypsophila, and saponaria saponins has also
been reported (Bomford et al., 1992; Oda et al., 2000; Estrada
et al., 1998).
Cholesterol-lowering activity of saponins, which has been
demonstrated in animal (Oakenfull and Sidhu, 1990; Matsuura,
2001) and human trials (Oakenfull and Sidhu, 1990; Kim et al.,
2003b; Bingham et al., 1978), has been attributed to inhibition of
the absorption of cholesterol from the small intestine, or the reabsorption of bile acids (Oakenfull and Sidhu, 1990). Feeding animals (poultry, rats, monkeys) diets containing purified saponins
or concentrated extracts containing saponins such as digitonin (a
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steroid saponin obtained from Digitalis purpurea), saikosaponin

(triterpenoid saponins obtained from roots of Bupleurum falcatum L. and related plants), saponaria, soya, chick pea, yucca, alfalfa, fenugreek, quillaja, gypsohila, and garlic saponins resulted
in reductions in the plasma and in some cases liver cholesterol
concentrations (Oakenfull and Sidhu, 1990; Matsuura, 2001).
Recent research highlighted the role of saponins in addition to
isoflavones on the hypocholesterolemic effect of soy protein
(Lucas et al., 2001; Oakenfull, 2001). The cholesterol lowering
effect of dietary saponins in humans is also supported by ecological studies (Chapman et al., 1997). The low incidence of heart
disease in the Batemi and Maasai populations of East Africa despite a saturated fat/cholesterol diet, has in part been attributed
to the use of plant dietary additives containing saponins in addition to polyphenols, phytosteroids and water-soluble dietary
fibre (Chapman et al., 1997).
Anticancer activity has been reported for a number of triterpene and steroid saponins including but not limited to soyasaponins (Rao and Sung, 1995; Kerwin, 2004; Berhow et al.,
2000; Plewa et al., 1998), ginsenosides (Huang and Jia, 2005;
Liu et al., 2000), saikosaponin-d (Hsu et al., 2004), diosgenin
(Raju et al., 2004), and glycyrrhizic acid (Hsiang et al., 2002).
Although the potential of soybean saponins as anticarcinogens
has been studied in recent years, animal studies are rather limited and most of the evidence comes from cell culture studies (Kerwin, 2004). Methyl protoneogracillin (Hu and Yao,
2003), methyl protogracillin (Hu and Yao, 2001) (steroidal
saponins isolated from the rhizomes of Dioscorea collettii), protoneodioscin (Hu and Yao, 2002a), and protodioscin (Hu and
Yao, 2002b) (furastanol saponins isolated from the rhizomes of
Dioscorea collettii) have been identified as potential anticancer
agents by the National Cancer Institutes (NCI) anticancer drug
screen program. Anticancer activities of saponin containing
plants such as ginseng and licorice are also being investigated
(Wang and Nixon, 2001; Yun and Choi, 1998; Shin et al., 2000).
While the cancer preventive effects of ginseng have been demonstrated in experimental models and in epidemiological studies,
the evidence on its effect on humans is not conclusive (Shin
et al., 2000).
The aglycones, which might be naturally present in the plants
or formed by hydrolysis of saponins in vivo or during storage
and/or processing of the plant material, may have biological
activity which is absent or present in a lower degree in their
corresponding saponins. The study of the relationship between
chemical structure and colon anticancer activity of soybean
saponins (as indicated by their ability to suppress the growth
of a colon cancer cell line) revealed that the soyasapogenols
were more bioactive than the glycosidic saponins (Gurfinkel
and Rao, 2003). Other aglycones with anticancer activity include dammarane sapogenins from ginseng (Huang and Qi,
2005), betulinic acid (Yogeeswari and Sriram, 2005; Wick et
al., 1999), and oleanolic acid (Liu, 1995; Hsu et al., 1997).
Oleanolic acid, one of the most common triterpene saponin aglycone, has also been reported to possess anti-viral (anti-HIV),
anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, anti-ulcer, antibacterial,
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hypoglycaemic, anti-fertility, and anticariogenic activity (Liu,

1995). Anti-viral (anti-HIV), anticancer, antibacterial, antimalarial, anti-inflammatory, anthelmintic, and antioxidant properties have been demonstrated for betulinic acid and its derivatives (Yogeeswari and Sriram, 2005). The conversion of saponins
to their aglycones may also result in the loss of activity. For example the hydrolysis of saponins by ruminal bacteria results
in the loss of antiprotozoal activity, which requires the intact
saponin structure (Cheeke, 1999). Similarly, the deacylation of
quillaja saponins decreased their adjuvant activity (Marciani
et al., 2002).
COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS
The diverse physicochemical and biological properties of
saponins have been successfully exploited in a number of commercial applications in food, cosmetics, agricultural and pharmaceutical sectors. Market trends towards the use of natural
ingredients, and increasing evidence of their biological activity have increased the demand for saponins in recent years
(Brown, 1998; Malcolm, 1995). As natural non-ionic surfactants, they find widespread use as emulsification and foaming agents, and detergents (San Martin and Briones, 1999;
Balandrin, 1996). Other investigated/proposed applications of
saponins and saponin containing plants include as feed additives (Cheeke, 1999; Zhan, 1999; Aoun et al., 2003; Jensen and
Elgaard, 2001), as bacterial (Henderson, 2001) and vegetable
growth regulators (Yamauchi et al., 2000), and for soil remediation (Roy et al., 1997). While the two major commercial
sources of saponins are Quillaja saponaria and Yucca schidigera extracts (San Martin and Briones, 1999; Balandrin, 1996), a
number of other plant materials such as horse chestnut (Indena,
2005), tea seed (Zhan, 1999), and soybeans (Organic Technologies, 2005) are being utilized/evaluated for use as commercial
sources of saponins. Pharmaceutical applications of saponins
include as raw materials for production of hormones (Blunden
et al., 1975), immunological adjuvants (Kensil et al., 2004),
and as drugs (Panagin Pharmaceuticals Inc., 2005; Panacos,
2005). Saponins have also been reported to be the active ingredients in various natural health products, such as herbal extracts
(Balandrin, 1996).
Food Applications
Yucca (Mohave yucca, Yucca schidigera Roezl Fla) and quillaja (quillaia, soap bark, Quillaja saponaria Mol Fla) are classified as food additives in the US under section 172.50 (Natural
Flavoring Substances and Natural Substances Used in Conjuction with Flavors) (US Food and Drug Administration, 2003).
The food additives from natural origins containing saponins used
in Japan include enzymatically modified soybean saponin, Pfaffia paniculata extract, quillaja extract, tea seed saponins, and
yucca foam extract (Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare,
2005). Quillaja extract is classified by the European Union as a

foaming agent for use in water-based, flavored non-alcoholic
drinks (E 999; 200 mg/liter calculated as anhydrous extract)
(Office for Official Publications of the European Communities,
1996).
Although quillaja and yucca are not considered Generally
Recognized As Safe (GRAS) by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), they have been given GRAS designation by
Flavor and Extract Manufacturers Association (FEMA) (FEMA
#2973, and 3120 respectively) (Ash and Ash, 2002). There is a
pending GRAS notice (GRN #165) received by FDA in 2005
from the American Beverage Association for quillaja extract
(type 2) to be used as a foaming agent in semi-frozen carbonated and non-carbonated beverages at levels not exceeding 500
milligrams dry weight per kilogram beverage (US Food and
Drug Administration, 2005a).
Quillaja extract (type 1) is used in foods and beverages mainly
for its foaming properties at concentrations of 100 ppm (dry basis, undiluted extract) in soft drinks, and at concentrations up
to 250 ppm in frozen carbonated beverages (Joint FAO/WHO
Expert Committee on Food Additives, 2004). Quillaja extract,
type 2 is used in Japan as an emulsifier for preparations containing lipophilic colors or flavors that are added to soft drinks,
fermented vegetables, and dressing (at claimed concentrations
<10 ppm) (Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives, 2004). Licorice and licorice derivatives, which are considered as GRAS by FDA, are used in foods such as baked foods,
beverages, chewing gum, candy, herbs and seasonings, plant
protein products, and vitamin and mineral dietary supplements
as a flavoring agent only with specific limitations (U.S. Food
and Drug Administration, 2005b). Saponins have also been proposed for use in foods as antimicrobial (Sogabe et al., 2003)
and anti-yeast agents (Ashida and Matsuda, 1999). Other commercial saponin products for food applications include soybean
concentrates marketed as functional food ingredients and nutraceuticals (Organic Technologies, 2005), and a Korean ginseng
extract called saponia (Godwithus Co Ltd., 2005).
The presumed health benefits of oleanolic acid led to the
development of methods to fortify food products (such as olive
oil) with oleanolic acid (van Putte, 2002). Proposed applications
for oleanolic acid include as a flavoring agent to modify the
aftertaste/taste of the artificial sweetener (Kang et al., 1999) and
in fat blends as crystal modifier (Bhaggan et al., 2001).
The physicohemical properties of saponins can also be utilized in food processing applications. Thus, while complex formation of saponins with cholesterol has been used for the removal of cholesterol from dairy products such as butter oil
(Micich et al., 1992; Richardson and Jimenez-Flores, 1994), the
interaction of saponins with cell membranes has been considered for the selective precipitation of fat globule membranes
from cheese whey (Hwang and Damodaran, 1994). In this
last application, saponins are used to increase the hydrophobicity of the fat membrane to facilitate flocculation and precipitation of the formed complexes (Hwang and Damodaran,
1994).
SAPONINS
Cosmetics
Due to their surface active properties, saponins are being utilized as natural surfactants in cleansing products in the personal
care sector such as shower gels, shampoos, foam baths, hair conditioners and lotions, bath/shower detergents, liquid soaps, baby
care products, mouth washes, and toothpastes (Indena, 2005;
Olmstead, 2002; Brand and Brand, 2004). Natural surfactants
containing saponins available commercially include Juazarine
from the bark of Zizyphus joazeiro tree (Anonymous, 2004),
horse chestnut saponins (Indena, 2005) and mixture of plant
saponins (Bio-Saponins, Bio-Botanica, Inc., 2005). Saponins
and sapogenins are also marketed as bioactive ingredients in
cosmetic formulations with claims to delay the aging process of
the skin (Yoo et al., 2003; Bonte et al., 1998), and prevent acne
(Bombardelli et al., 2001).
Pharmaceutical/Health Applications
Steroid saponin-containing plant materials gained commercial significance in 1950s as raw materials for the production
of steroid hormones and drugs. The synthesis of progesterone
from the sapogenin diosgenin (Figure 1A) obtained from Mexican yam by Marker et al. in 1940s (Marker et al., 1947) was the
beginning of a remarkable era in steroid research culminating
in the synthesis of the first oral contraceptive in 1951. Diosgenin isolated from Dioscorea species and to a lesser extent
structurally similar sapogenins such as hecogenin from Agave
species have been widely used as raw materials by the steroid
industry (Blunden et al., 1975).
Saponins have been used as immunological adjuvants in veterinary vaccine formulations due to their immune enhancing
properties since 1950s (Dalsgaard, 1974). Their use in human
vaccines, however, has been limited by their complexity and toxicity. Purification of the quillaja extract to yield fractions with
differing chemical and biological properties enabled the characterization and thus reproducible production of the fractions for
optimal adjuvant activity and minimal haemolytic activity and
toxicity (Cox et al., 2002; Kensil and Marciani, 1991). Consequently, there have been significant advances in the development
of saponins as human vaccine adjuvants in the last decade leading to the development of a new generation of vaccines against
cancer and infectious diseases which are at various phases of
clinical trials (Kensil et al., 2004). The use of quillaja extracts
(even at concentrations commonly used in foods) as oral adjuvants in human clinical tests requires supporting toxicology
and general safety data due to their non-GRAS status (Dirk and
Webb, 2005).
The wealth of information on the biological activity of
saponins and aglycones from a variety of sources is providing
leads for the development of drugs. The chemopreventive and
chemotherapeutic activities of ginseng dammarane sapogenins
have prompted the development of anticancer drugs which are
at various stages of development (Panagin Pharmaceuticals Inc.,
241
2005). A new class of HIV drugs called Maturation Inhibitors

(PA-457, in Phase 2 clinical trials) are being developed using
betulinic acid derivatives (Panacos, 2005).
Pharmaceutical compositions or plant extracts containing
saponins have been patented for the prevention and/or treatment of a variety of conditions such as inflammation (Forse and
Chavali, 1997; Bombardelli et al., 2001), infection (Forse and
Chavali, 1997), alcoholism (Bombardelli and Gabetta, 2001),
pre- and post-menopausal symptoms (Bombardelli and Gabetta,
2001), cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases such as coronary heart disease and hypertension (Yao et al., 2005; Hidvegi,
1994), prophylaxis and dementia (Ma et al., 2003), ultraviolet
damage including cataract, and carcinoma cutaneum (Satoshi
et al., 2004), gastritis, gastric ulcer, and duodenal ulcer (Kim
et al., 2003a). The use of saponins in pharmaceutical preparations as adjuvants to enhance absorption of pharmacologically
active substances or drugs has also been patented (Kensil et al.,
1996; Tanaka and Yata, 1985).
Saponin-containing plants such as ginseng, yucca, horse
chestnut, sarsaparilla, and licorice have been used in traditional medicine by various cultures for centuries for the prevention/ treatment of various ailments (Liu and Henkel, 2002;
Hostettmann and Marston, 1995). Characterization of the medicinal plants and their extracts points to the role of saponins in conjuction with other bioactive components such as polyphenols in
the observed health effects (Liu and Henkel, 2002; Alice et al.,
1991). Over 85% of the herbs most commonly used in Traditional Chinese Medicine were observed to contain saponins
(in addition to polyphenols) in significant detectable amounts,
while the herbal products in the eight best known and most commonly used formulae were explicitly rich in these components
(Liu and Henkel, 2002). It should be noted that while some of
the health benefits associated with these plants have been supported by clinical data or described in pharmacopeias and in
traditional systems of medicine, a variety of uses attributed to
these medicinal plants have not been substantiated (Table 6).
EXTRACTION AND PURIFICATION OF SAPONINS

AND SAPOGENINS
The recognition of the commercial significance of saponins
with expanding applications and increasing evidence of their
health benefits have prompted research on process development
for the production of saponins on a commercial-scale from natural sources. Existing food processing methods, such as soy protein production, are also being re-evaluated to obtain information
on the partitioning of saponins between different process streams
(Rickert et al., 2004a, 2004b), which is used to recover saponins
as separate fractions (Haokui, 2001), to maximize their retention
in the final product (Singh, 2004), and to identify potential raw
materials for the production of saponins (Rickert et al., 2004a).
Due to the abundance of saponins in nature, a wide range of
plant materials can be used as raw materials for commercial production of saponins. A significant commercial opportunity lies
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Table 6 Medicinal uses of licorice (Radix glycyrrhizae), ginseng (Radix ginseng), and horse chest nut (Semen hippocastani) (World Health Organization,
1999a, 1999b, 2001)
MEDICINAL USES
Radix glycyrrhizae
Supported by clinical data
Described in pharmacopeias or in
traditional medicines
Described in folk medicine, not

supported by experimental or
clinical data
Radix ginseng
As a prophylactic and restorative
agent for enhancement of mental
and physical capacities, in case of
weakness, exhaustion, tiredness,
and loss of concentration, and
during convalescence.
As a demulcent in the treatment of sore

throats, and as an expectorant in the
treatment of coughs and bronchial
catarrh. In the prophylaxis and
treatment of gastric and duodenal
ulcers and dyspepsia. As an antiinflammatory agent in the treatment of
allergic reactions, rheumatism and
arthiritis, to prevent liver toxicity, and
to treat tuberculosis and
adrenocorticoid insufficiency.
As a laxative, emmenagogue,
contraceptive, galactagogue,
antiasthmatic drug, and antiviral
agent. In the treatment of dental caries,
kidney stones, heart disease,
consumption, epilepsy, loss of
appetite, appendicitis, dizziness,
tetanus, diphtheria, snake bite and
haemorrhoids.
in the value-added processing of by-products for the concentration of saponins and/or aglycones such as soybean oil extraction
residue (Yoshiki et al., 2005), soy molasses (Dobbins, 2002),
asparagus waste (Schwarzbach et al., 2004), and sugarbeet pulp
(Sasazuka et al., 1995).
The development of an effective processing methodology
starts with the identification of process objectives/product specifications, which is in turn determined by end-product use. The
spectrum of saponins with commercial applications ranges from
crude plant extracts, which are commonly used for their foaming
properties, to high purity saponins with health applications such
as vaccine adjuvants, production of which requires a sequence
of purification steps. In addition to well-established analytical
methodologies, new technologies and approaches are also being investigated to overcome processing challenges posed by the
complex nature and diversity of this unique class of compounds.
While common trends can be identified, process development
is carried out for each raw material as the composition of the
plant material and the saponin mixture will affect the process
considerably.
Extraction of Saponins
The first step in the processing of saponins involves their
extraction from the plant matrix. As in any extraction process, the
extraction solvent, extraction conditions (such as temperature,
Treatment of diabetes, impotence,

prevention of hepatoxicity, and
gastrointestinal disorders such as
gastritis and ulcer.
Treatment of liver disease, coughs,

fever, tuberculosis, rheumatism,
vomiting of pregnancy,
hypothermia, dyspnoea, and
nervous disorders.
Semen hippocastani
For treatment of symptoms of chronic
venous insufficiency, including
pain, feeling of heaviness in legs,
nocturnal calf-muscle spasms,
itching and oedema.
For the symptomatic treatment of
chronic venous insufficiency,
sprains and bruises.
Treatment of coronary heart disease.
Treatment of bacillary dysentery and

fevers. Also as a haemostat for
excessive menstrual or other
gynaecological bleeding, and as a
tonic.
time, pH, solvent to feed ratio), and the properties of the feed
material (such as composition and particle size) are the main
factors that determine process efficiency and the properties of
the end product.
If a purified product is desired, the efficiency of the purification steps needs to be considered while optimizing extraction
parameters. For example, conditions maximizing the extraction
yield can decrease the selectivity and thus, the purity of the
saponins, complicating further purification steps (Wanezaki et
al., 2005). The finding that malonyl isoflavones could be separated from soybean saponins easier than other soybean isoflavones due to their higher polarity led to the optimization of the
extraction of soybean saponins to be based on malonyl isoflavone
content of the extract (Wanezaki et al., 2005).
Sample Pretreatment
Pretreatment steps, which are carried out to increase the efficiency of the extraction, include drying, particle size reduction,
and defatting (using a lipophilic solvent such as ethyl acetate
or hexane). Defatting can also be carried out after the extraction of saponins. Particle size reduction (grinding) is usually
carried out to increase the mass transfer efficiency of the extraction. The variable qualitative and quantitative distribution
of saponins in plants enables the selection of the plant part to
be used as raw material considering efficiency of the process
SAPONINS
and/or extract properties. The efficiency of the separation is

improved by using part of the plant with the highest saponin
concentration. Selection of the raw material can also be used to
overcome processing challenges posed by the other components
present. For example, the use of quinoa hulls as raw material
for saponin extraction eliminated the problems associated with
swelling of starch during extraction of whole seeds (Muir et al.,
2002).
Extraction Methods
While traditional solvent extraction methods are commonly
used for the production of saponin extracts, recent research focuses on technologies that improve the extraction efficiency by
reducing extraction time and solvent consumption/waste without
compromising sample quality. Microwave (Vongsangnak, 2004;
Kwon et al., 2003a,b,c) and ultrasound (Wu et al., 2001) assisted
extractions involve disruption of the internal cell structure and
release of intracellular product to facilitate mass transfer, which
is achieved by rapid and selective heating of the raw material in a
solvent which is (partially) transparent to microwave energy (in
microwave extractions) (Kwon et al., 2003a,b,c; Vongsangnak,
2004) and the mechanical effects of acoustic cavitation (in ultrasonic extractions) (Wu et al., 2001).
Commercial applications of Microwave-Assisted Processes
(MAPTM , microwave technologies patented by Environment
Canada) are being currently developed for extraction of natural products such as oilseeds (in collaboration with Bunge
Canada, formerly CanAmera Foods, and BC Research) (Environment Canada, 2005) and high value, low volume, natural active ingredients for the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical markets
(Radient Technologies Inc., 2005). Ultrasonic liquid processing devices are being used at production level in the pharmaceutical, chemical, petrochemical, and paint industry as well
as in the bioprocessing and food industries (Hielscher GmbH,
2005).
Lab-scale microwave and ultrasonic extractions were investigated for the extraction of ginsenosides from ginseng (Kwon
et al., 2003b; Vongsangnak, 2004), saponins from chickpeas
(Kerem et al., 2005) and glycyrrhizic acid from licorice root
(Pan et al., 2000). The ginsenoside yield and composition of a
80% methanol (50 mL) extract obtained from ginseng powder
TM
(5 g) using MAP for 30 s (4) (at 72.2 C) were comparable to
those of a 12 hr conventional reflux extraction carried out under
similar conditions (Kwon et al., 2003b). Similarly, a maximum
saponin yield of 7.4 mg/100 mg DW could be obtained in 6 min
by microwave-assisted extraction of ginseng (100 mg sample:
15 mL water-saturated n-butanol, 50 C) compared to 8 hr for
soxhlet extraction (7.7 mg/100 mg DW; 100 mg sample: 80 mL
methanol, 70 C), 6 hr for heat reflux extraction (6.7 mg/100 mg
DW; 100 mg sample: 15 mL methanol, 70 C), and 2 hr for ultrasonic extraction (7.6 mg/100 mg DW; 100 mg sample: 15 mL
water-saturated n-butanol) (Vong sangnak, 2004). Savings in
time and solvent consumption compared to traditional methods such as heat reflux, ultrasonic, Soxhlet extractions, and ex-
243
traction at room temperature were also achieved by microwave

assisted extraction of glycyrrhizic acid from licorice root (Pan
et al., 2000). Multi-stage counter-current extraction has also
been investigated to improve the efficiency of extraction of glycyrrhizic acid from licorice (Wang et al., 2004).
Pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) involves the use of pressurized solvents at high temperatures. The high temperatures
made possible by the application of pressure results in improvements in mass transfer properties of the solvent, hence improving extracting efficiency. The change in solvent polarity hence
solubility with temperature of the pressurized solvent coupled
with enhanced mass transfer properties makes PLE an attractive method for saponin processing; however, the applications
up to date have largely been limited to analytical procedures. In
their study on the PLE of medicinal plants, Benthin et al. (1999)
compared PLE of escin from CH2 Cl2 -defatted horse chestnut
using aqueous methanol (65%) at 140 bar and 100 C with traditional extraction procedure and achieved a higher escin concentration in the pressurized liquid extract (3.73%) than in the
traditional extract (2.63%). Extraction efficiency of ginsenosides
from Panax ginseng, American ginseng and health supplement
products using PLE (2530 bar, 20 minute extraction, 2025 mL
solvent used, 140 C) was comparable to Soxhlet extraction (Lee
et al., 2002). The ginsenoside yield of aqueous non-ionic surfactants was higher than that of water (at concentrations higher
than critical micelle concentration (0.01%)) and methanol at
lower temperatures (Choi et al., 2003). Efficiency of extraction
of glycyrrhizic acid from licorice using pressurized methanol
(Ong, 2002) (at 100 C, 20 min, 2025 mL solvent) and pressurized water (Ong and Len, 2003) (at 95 C) was comparable
to or higher than that obtained with a multiple step ultrasonic
extraction using 70% methanol.
Extraction Solvent
Water, lower alcohols (methanol and ethanol), or water: alcohol mixtures have been widely used for extraction of saponins
from plant matrices (Kitagawa, 1986; Bombardelli and Gabetta,
2001). Other solvents investigated for extraction of saponins
include aqueous (Choi et al., 2003; Fang et al., 2000) and alcoholic surfactant solutions (Choi et al., 2003), and glycerine
(Gafner et al., 2004). The addition of ammonia to solvents for
glycyrrhizic acid extraction is based on chemical complexation
of glycyrrhizic acid with ammonia, which results in an increase
in its extraction yield (Pan et al., 2000).
Supercritical CO2 has been demonstrated to be a viable alternative to organic solvents for the processing of natural materials
with advantages such as ease of solvent removal, solvent free
products, and an oxygen free environment. However, the application of SCCO2 technology to the processing of polar solutes
such as polyphenolic and glycosidic compounds has been limited by the low solvent power of SCCO2 for these solutes, which
can be improved by the addition of cosolvents (Hamburger et al.,
2004). The use of cosolvents, however, overrides one of the major advantages of SCCO2 processing: solvent-free processing.
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Supercritical CO2 extraction of ginsenosides from ginseng

(Wang et al., 2001), saikosaponins from Bupleurum chinense DC
(Ge et al., 2000) and glycyrrhizic acid from licorice (Chuanjing
et al., 2000; Kim et al., 2004) using cosolvents (ethanol (Wang
et al., 2001; Ge et al., 2000), methanol (Chuanjing et al., 2000),
and aqueous methanol (Chuanjing et al., 2000)) has been reported. Wang et al (Wang et al., 2001) obtained an oil product
containing ginsenosides using SCCO2 extraction of ginseng root
hair at 308333 K and 10.431.2 MPa with ethanol. The addition
of ethanol to CO2 (6 mol%) increased the SFE yield of ginsenosides in ginseng oil by a factor of 10 while increasing the yield of
the oil by a factor of 4 at 333 K and 31.2 MPa. The enrichment of
saponins in plant oils offer interesting product formulations, and
may warrant further research. Optimum conditions for recovery
of glycyrrhizic acid from licorice were 30 MPa and 60 C for
60 min using SCCO2 + 70% methanol (15% by volume) (Kim
et al., 2004).
Effect on Extraction Yield. The choice of solvent for a particular application will be based on the effect of solvent on saponin
yield and purity, and the composition of the saponin mixture.
Differences between yield and composition of extracts arise
from the varying selectivities of the solvents towards individual saponins and other feed components.
The saponin recovery obtained by aqueous alcohol extraction
(4080%) of quinoa hulls was higher than that obtained by pure
water or alcohol extractions (Muir et al., 2002). Ultrasoundassisted and Soxhlet extraction of ginseng using water-saturated
n-butanol gave higher ginsenoside yields than pure and 10%
methanol (Figure 2) (Wu et al., 2001). DDMP-saponin yield of
80% ethanol extraction of dehulled peas was higher than that of
pure methanol extraction, which was very low (Daveby et al.,
1998).
The yield of crude extract of Glinus lotoides seeds decreased
with the methanol content of aqueous methanol, and the highest crude extract yield (16.5%) was observed with pure water.
The highest yield of the n-butanol fraction (obtained by the
Figure 2 Total ginsenoside yield obtained by extraction of Chinese ginseng

root with water, water-saturated butanol, and 10% methanol in UB-ultrasound
cleaning bath, UP-ultrasound probe horn, and Sox-Soxhlet extractor (from Wu
et al., 2001, Copyright (2001), with permission from Elsevier).
18
crude extract
n-butanol fraction
purified extract
16
14
12
% Yield (w/w)
244
10
8
6
4
2
0
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
% Methanol in water
Figure 3 Yield of crude extract, n-butanol fraction, and purified extract obtained by extraction of Glinus lotoides seeds as a function of solvent composition
(Data from Endale et al., 2004).
partitioning of the crude extract between water and n-butanol)

and the purified saponins, however, was achieved by 20 and
60% methanol, respectively (Figure 3) (Endale et al., 2004).
TM
The highest total extract yield of MAP extraction of ginseng
was obtained using 4560% ethanol, whereas the saponin content increased with ethanol concentration reaching a maximum
at 6075% ethanol (Kwon et al., 2003c). In red ginseng extraction (at 80 C, 58 hr), solids yield decreased whereas recovery
of ginsenosides increased with ethanol concentration (optimum
composition with 70% ethanol) (Sung and Yang, 1985).
The recovery of glycyrrhizic acid from licorice using microwave assisted extraction reached a maximum at 5060%
ethanol (Pan et al., 2000). Addition of ammonia to the extraction
solvent, which reacts with glycyrrhizic acid to form glycyrrhizic
ammoniate, resulted in higher recoveries which were independent of ethanol concentration in 060% ethanol range (Pan et al.,
2000). No significant difference in glycyrrhizic acid yield was
observed between the solvents pure water, 10% ethanol, and
0.5 wt% ammonia in water (Wang et al., 2004).
Effect on Composition of Saponins and Properties of
Extracts. The extraction solvent will also affect the composition
of the saponin extract. The ratio of neutral to malonyl ginsenosides in aqueous ethanol extract of American ginseng increased
with the proportion of ethanol in the solvent (Du et al., 2004).
While maximum extraction of neutral ginsenosides was obtained
with 70% ethanol, the highest yield of malonyl ginsenosides was
achieved using 40% ethanol resulting in the highest total ginsenoside yield with 60% ethanol (Du et al., 2004). Differential
extraction of saponins from quinoa bran using pure water and
alcohol solvents was reflected in the differences in the saponin
composition of the extracts (Muir et al., 2002).
Extraction solvent has also been found to affect the physicochemical properties of the saponin extracts, including particle size, size distribution, morphology, water uptake profiles,
sorption isotherms, densities, flow properties, and compaction
SAPONINS
Figure 4 Recovery (g/100 g seed dry weight) of DDMP-saponin obtained

by extraction of ground chickpea using microwave assisted extraction (three
serial 5-min extractions) and Soxhlet extraction with methanol (black), and 70%
ethanol (gray). Bars represent means standard deviation (n = 5); different
letters represent statistical significance level of p 0.01 (from Kerem et al.,
2005, Copyright Society of Chemical Industry. Reproduced with permission.
Permission is granted by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. on behalf of the SCI).
profiles, which are of great significance in pharmaceutical applications (Endale et al., 2004).
Effect of Temperature and Solvent:Feed Ratio on Extraction
Efficiency. While temperature was found to have no effect on the
microwave-assisted methanol extraction of chickpea saponins,
the saponin yield of ethanol:water extracts increased with temperature (Figure 4) (Kerem et al., 2005). Solids (total extract)
yield of red ginseng extraction increased while saponin recovery
decreased with temperature (particularly at 100 C) (Sung et al.,
1985). The multi-stage counter-current extraction yield and glycyrrhizic acid concentration both increased with temperature in
the range 3070 C (Wang et al., 2004). The temperature effect
on the composition of aqueous licorice extract was reflected in its
flavor characteristics (Vora and Testa, 1997). The low temperature (65.682.2 C) extracts had significantly higher glycyrrhizic
acid, sugar content, and inorganic salt content, with a mild, sweet
flavor, whereas higher temperatures resulted in stronger licorice
character with balanced sweetness (Vora and Testa, 1997).
Glycyrrhizic acid concentration in the ethanol extract of
licorice decreased with increasing solvent/feed ratio from
339 mg/mL at 6 mL/g to 245 mg/mL at 10 mg/mL while extraction yield stayed in the range of 7583% (Wang et al., 2004).
An increase in recovery of glycyrrhizic acid (%) with microwave
assisted extraction was observed with solvent/feed ratio (from
1.88% at 5:1 to 2.58% at 20:1) (Pan et al., 2000). The optimum
ratio for quinoa saponin extraction was determined to be 10
15:1 considering extraction yield and practical considerations
such as ease of stirring (Muir et al., 2002).
Purification of Saponins
Purification of the crude saponin extract usually requires a
sequential approach. A common method for the preliminary
purification of saponins after the extraction step involves the
partitioning of saponins between aqueous extracts and a water
immiscible solvent such as n-butanol (Kitagawa, 1986). Fur-
245
ther purification can be carried out using solvent precipitation

(Kitagawa, 1986; Nozomi et al., 1986), adsorption (Giichi,
1987), ultrafiltration (Muir et al., 2002), and/or chromatography (Kensil and Marciani, 1991). While chromatographic procedures such as open column chromatography, thin layer chromatography, flash chromatography, liquid chromatography (low,
medium and high pressure), and countercurrent chromatography
have been well established and widely used for analytical scale
purification of saponins (Hostettmann and Marston, 1995), their
feasibility for commercial scale processing of saponins needs to
be evaluated. The purification techniques used in the production
of saponins for a variety of applications are discussed below
with specific examples.
An aqueous extract of Quillaja saponaria bark was separated into 22 fractions (QA1-22) with different adjuvant activity and toxicity using a purification procedure involving
methanol extraction followed by silica gel and reverse phase
high pressure liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) (Figure 5)
(Kensil and Marciani, 1991).
Due to their high volume of production and increasing evidence on the biological activity of soyasaponins, soybeans (Dobbins, 2002; Giichi, 1987; Bombardelli and Gabetta, 2001), and
by-products of soybean processing (Yoshiki et al., 2005) have
great potential as raw materials for commercial saponin production. The full realization of this potential in the marketplace
however requires development of processing schemes to effectively tackle the associated processing challenges.
The patent Process for isolating saponins from soybeanderived materials (Dobbins, 2002) exploits the temperature dependence of solubility behavior of saponins in water:acetone
mixtures for the production of a soyasaponin concentrate. An
acetone:water (4:1) extraction step (56 C at atmospheric pressure at pH >6.5) followed by cooling the extract led to the
precipitation of saponins resulting in a 70% saponin concentrate.
Further purification up to 90% was achieved by crystallization.
A soya extract containing 22.5% group B soyasaponin and
15% isoflavones was obtained by reflux extraction with pure
or aqueous aliphatic alcohols followed by hexane extraction
(for defatting purposes) (Figure 6) (Bombardelli and Gabetta,
2001). In an alternative approach, the defatted soya extract was
treated with polyethoxylated castor oil to dissolve the resinous
residues and adsorbed onto a polystyrene-based resin. Soya extract containing the isoflavones and saponins were then eluted
using 95% ethanol (Figure 6). The soya extract was fractionated into group B saponins and isoflavones using solvent precipitation with aqueous alcohol and a water immiscible protic
solvent (such as ethyl acetate) (Figure 6). The fractionation of
soya extracts into isoflavone and saponin fractions can also be
achieved using an adsorption step (Giichi, 1987; Bombardelli
and Gabetta, 2001). The saponin fraction can be further purified using gel filtration and partition chromatography (Giichi,
1987).
Due to the unstable structure of soyasaponin g, which adds
to the complexity and cost of the purification process, group
B and E saponins were identified as target compounds in the
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Commercial aqueous Quillaja saponaria Molina extract

Quil-A (1 g)
Extract with methanol (75 mL1 + 50 mL2) at 60 C
Filtrates 1+2
Evaporate to dryness on a rotoevaporator
Silica gel chromatography

Silica Si-60 column preequilibriated in 40 mM acetic acid
in chloroform:methanol:water (62/32/6, v/v/v)
Silica fractions (monitored by carbohydrate analysis, TLC, and HPLC)

Pooled and flash evaporated for further purification
Pooled fractions
Enriched in
19-30
QA-21
31-60
QA-8 and 18
85-104
QA-7 and 17
Further purification by Reverse Phase HPLC (Vydac C4 column)
QA-21
QA-18
QA-7 and QA-17
isocratic separation in 40 mM
methanol gradient in 40 mM acetic acid
acetic acid in 58% methanol
50-56% methanol/0-10 min 56-69% methanol, 10-79 min
Figure 5
Purification of quillaja saponins for use as adjuvants (adapted from Kensil and Marciani, 1991).
processing of a soybean by-product, the residue of oil extraction,

for the isolation of functional soybean saponins (Yoshiki et al.,
2005). A fractionation procedure for the production of Group B
and E saponin fractions was developed based on information on
the chemical characteristics of soyasaponin g (Figure 7). The
soybean glycosides obtained by acidic precipitation were further
fractionated into an isoflavone-rich (supernatant) and a DDMP

saponin-Fe2 complex rich fraction (precipitate) by dissolving
them in ethanol, mixing with FeCl2 and allowing them to stand
overnight. Saponins were further purified by alkaline hydrolysis
to remove Fe-DDMP complex, followed by acidic precipitation
and partitioning of the precipitate between water and n-butanol.
247
SAPONINS
Oil-free soy flour (10 kg)

containing 0.2% of glucoside isoflavones, and 0.3% group B soyasaponins
Reflux extraction with 95% ethanol (30 L, X 5)
Concentration of the combined extracts (to 5 L)
Dilute with H2O (1.5 L)
Hexane extraction (5L, X 4)
Alcohol phase
Extraction with
n-butanol (X4, 2.5 L)
Organic phase
Concentrate/Dry
Hexane phase
Treatment with polyethoxylated castor oil to

dissolve the resinous residues
Suspend in water (5 L)
Adsorption to a polystyrene-based resin (XAD1180)
Flush with water
Elution with 95% ethanol (10 L)

133 g
Concentrate/Dry
130 g
Soya extract: 22.5 % (w/w) group B soyasaponin
15 % (w/w) isoflavones
Figure 6
Production and purification of soya extract containing saponins and isoflavones (adapted from Bombardelli and Gabetta, 2001).
248
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Suspend the extract (200 g) in 20% ethanol
Dilute with ethyl acetate (0.5 L)
Heat to complete dissolution
Precipitation at room temperature
Filter
Precipitate
Liquid phase
Group B soyasaponins Organic phase

93 % purity, 38 g
Concentrate and dry
Isoflavones
81% purity, 37 g
Figure 6
(Continued)
Figure 7 Fractionation of soybean glycosides based on chemical characteristics of soybean saponin g (from Yoshiki et al., 2005, Copyright (2005), with
permission from Elsevier).
SAPONINS
The evaporated and freeze-dried n-butanol fraction contained

Group B (>90%) and E saponins (>10%).
Soyasaponin-I has also been isolated from other legumes including red and white clover, alfalfa, and lucerne using solvent precipitation, adsorption, and heat treatment in an aqueous
lower aliphatic solution of an alkali hydroxide (Kitagawa, 1986).
One approach involved adsorption of the concentrated extract in
water or water:alcohol mixture (30%) using a porous, crosslinked polystyrene resin, followed by subsequent elution (with
alcohol or alcohol:water mixture), concentration and purification of the saponins by column chromatography on silica gel.
Alternatively, the crude saponins were recovered in n-butanol
by distributional extraction of the concentrated extract. The isolation of soyasaponin-I from the n-butanol fraction was then
achieved by solvent precipitation (using a soyasaponin soluble
and insoluble solvent pair such as methanol and ethyl acetate)
followed by treatment with activated charcoal and crystallization
from a solvent mixture of chloroform:methanol:water. Alternatively, the n-butanol extract was heated in an aqueous lower
aliphatic alcohol solution of an alkali hydroxide under reflux,
neutralized (by passing it through a column of an ion exchange
resin of strong acid type), concentrated, and further purified by
column chromatography on silica gel to obtain soyasaponin-I
(Kitagawa, 1986).
Quinoa saponin concentrates containing up to 8590%
saponins were produced by ultrafiltration of aqueous alcohol
extracts (Muir et al., 2002). Individual saponins were then
recovered by Reversed Phase Solid Phase Extraction and preparative RP-HPLC with 98% purity. Solvent (water-n-butanol) partitioning, dialysis, and membrane filtration have also been investigated for the recovery of saponins from quinoa (Muir et al.,
2002).
A patented process for the isolation of escin from horse chestnut uses the ether extraction of the cholesterol-saponin adduct
obtained by treating an aqueous-alcoholic horse chestnut extract with cholesterol and separation of the resulting precipitate
(Wagner and Bosse, 1964). Further fractionation of escin into
its two isomers of high purity is achieved by converting it into
free acid form (by treating it with a cation exchange agent) and
heating (5090 C) until one of the isomers is precipitated due
to low solubility in water (Wagner and Bosse, 1963).
Foaming properties of saponins have also been used for the
concentration of saponins from unfermented aqueous mixtures
(Barbour and Dibb, 1976). A 1050 fold saponin concentration
in the aqueous extract was achieved by foam fractionation with
a suitable gas (air, nitrogen and carbon dioxide) (Barbour and
Dibb, 1976).
Effect of Processing on Saponin Structure/Properties

As the processing focus shifts from elimination of saponins
to their extraction/concentration or retention, information on
the effect of processing conditions (such as heat treatment)
on the content, structure and properties of saponins becomes
249
a key element in process development. Chemical modification

of saponins, as outlined in the section on their physicochemical
properties, can take place during processing and/or storage resulting in a change in their total content, composition, and properties/biological activity which may or may not be desirable.
Information on the effect of processing conditions on saponins
is not only essential to product quality but can also be exploited
to customize the saponin properties for a specific application.
Earlier research on the effect of processing conditions on
saponins concentrated on the effects of food processing methods such as cooking, soaking, canning, and fermentation on
the saponin content of food plants or foods. The decrease in
saponin content of foods caused by these processes has been
well-documented for a variety of foods such as legumes and
quinoa (Anderson and Wolf, 1995; Zhou and Erdman, 1997;
Ridout et al., 1991).
The most widely investigated saponin group has been the ginsenosides with a wealth of information available on the effect of
various processes such as drying (Du et al., 2004; Popovich et
al., 2005), microwave and conventional heating (Ren and Chen,
1999), steaming (Kim et al., 2000), chemical treatment (Kim
et al., 1998a), extraction parameters (Du et al., 2004), irradiation
(Kwon et al., 1990), and storage (Du et al., 2004) on the concentration of individual ginsenosides and/or their biological activity.
The effects of heating, extraction, and storage on oat saponins
(Onning
et al., 1994), alfalfa saponins (Tava et al., 2003), and
soyasaponins (Daveby et al., 1998) have also been documented.
The thermal stability of selected saponins has been investigated by process conditions (time, temperature, pH) and the
properties of the saponin. Oat saponins (avenacosides A and
B) were heated at 100 and 140 C at different pH to study
the degradation during heat processing (Onning

et al., 1994).
While they were stable up to 100 C for 3 hr at pH 47, heating
at 140 C especially at pH 4 lead to partial degradation. The
degradation rate was significantly increased at pH 46 in the
presence of catalytic amounts of iron and stainless steel. Drying
of American ginseng at temperatures above 40 C resulted in
a decrease in the total ginsenoside content (Reynolds, 1998;
Du et al., 2004) with a corresponding increase in the ratio of
neutral/malonly ginsenosides, which was attributed to the hydrolysis of malonyl to neutral ginsenosides (Figure 8) (Du et al.,
2004). The lower thermal stability of malonyl ginsenosides was
also documented during heating of American ginseng in 50%
ethanol and aqueous extracts (Ren and Chen, 1999). The effect
of microwave heating on ginsenoside degradation was the same
as conventional heating (Ren and Chen, 1999). A relatively
lower thermal stability was also observed for protopanaxadiol
than protopanaxatriol saponin (Sung et al., 1985).
Degradation can also occur during extraction and storage as
affected by time and temperature (Daveby et al., 1998; Tava
et al., 2003). Extraction temperature will be limited by the thermal stability of the target compounds. For example, extraction
of glycyrrhizic acid using pressurized methanol was carried out
at 100 C as the stability was impaired at temperatures higher
than 120 C (Ong, 2002). The malonyl saikosaponins a and d
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Figure 8 Concentration of ginsenosides in ethanolic extracts obtained from

dried ginseng root powder (data from Du et al., 2004).
were hydrolyzed by heat and/or acid and the saikosaponins

were converted into hydroxylsaikosaponins during the decoction of Bupleurim falcatum roots (Ebata et al., 1996). DDMPconjugated soyasaponin I was converted into soyasaponin I during extraction and storage of dehulled peas (Daveby et al., 1998).
Prolonged storage of Medicago sativa L. saponins in ethanol
resulted in artefact formation due to esterification of acidic
saponins with alcohol (Tava et al., 2003). Extraction solvent
also affects the properties of the product through its effect on
the content and composition of saponins as outlined in the section on extraction solvent.
In the majority of the studies, the effect of processing on
saponins has been monitored using the total content or composition of the saponin mixture. Changes in the saponin content/composition, resulting from degradation of saponins present
in the raw material and production of new saponins, in turn affect
their properties such as bioactivity with significant implications
for product quality and product development.
The realization of the enhanced biological activity (antioxidant, anticancer activity) of heat-treated ginseng (such as red
ginseng produced by steaming and drying) has put the research
focus on the identification of trace compounds formed during
heating (Rh2 , Rg3 , Rg5 , Rh1 ) and the investigation of their biological activity (Yun et al., 2001; Kim et al., 2000). Steaming
of raw ginseng at temperatures >100 C enhanced its biological
properties such as its vasodilating (Kim et al., 2000), radical
scavenging activity (Figure 9, Kim et al., 2000) and cytotoxicity
(Figure 10, Park et al., 2002). The enhanced activity was in turn
attributed to the changes in the composition of the ginsenoside
mixture induced by the heat treatment (Figure 11). These findings have led to the use of processing as a means to enhance
the biological activity of ginsenosides (Park, 2005; Kim et al.,
1998b; An et al., 2005). A prodecure containing a series of drying and steaming steps has been used to improve the content of
ginsenosides with anticancer activity such as Rg1 , Rg2 , Rg3 , and
Rf (An et al., 2005). A ginseng product (sun ginseng) (with a ra-
Figure 9 Radical scavenging activity of raw and steamed ginsengs (mean

sem, n = 5) (from Kim et al., 2000. Copyright (2000) American Chemical
Society, and American Society of Pharmacognosy).
Figure 10 Cytotoxicity of (a) Methanol extracts of white ginseng (WG), red

ginseng (RG), processed ginseng (SG, 120 C, 3 h), and (b) Purified ginsenosides
(from Park et al., 2002, with permission).
251
SAPONINS
1.4
raw ginseng
100 C
110 C
120 C
Ginsenoside content (w/w, %)
1.2
1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
F4
Rg2
Rg1
Rg5
Rg3
Rf
Re
Rd
Rc
Rb2
Rb1
Ginsenoside
Figure 11
Content (w/w%) of ginsenosides in raw ginseng and ginsengs steamed at 100, 110, and 120 C (data from Kim et al., 2000).
tio of ginsenoside (Rg3 +Rg5 ) to (Rc+Rd+Rb1 +Rb2 ) above 1)

produced by heat treatment at 120180 C for 0.520 hours with
enhanced pharmacological effects such as antioxidant and vasodilation activity has also been patented (Kim et al., 1998b).
The hydrolysis of saponins to sapogenins can also modify their bioactivity (as discussed in the section on biological
activity). Ginseng sapogenins have been shown to have potent
anticancer activity making them the focus of drug development
efforts as discussed in the next section.
The biological activity of saponins can also be modified
by structural changes induced by activity of enzymes naturally present in the plant material. Enzymatic hydrolysis of
bidesmodic saponins retained in the fruit pulp of Phytolacca
dodecandra berries upon crushing of the berries during aqueous extraction resulted in the formation of monodesmosides
with high molluscicidal activity (Ndamba et al., 1994). Similarly, the fungitoxicities of the oat avenacosides were activated
by the cleavage of their C-26 bound glucose moiety by glucosidase (avenacosidase) contained in oat leaves (Grunweller
and Kesselmeier, 1985).
Chemical modification of DDMP-conjugated soyasaponins
in soybeans can lead to changes in the quality of soybean foods.
For example, while hydrolysis of DDMP saponins can lead to
changes in flavor characteristics, the color of the product can be
modified by the formation of an insoluble brown complex in the
presence of iron (Okubo and Yoshiki, 1994).
Extraction and Purification of Sapogenins

The isolation of sapogenins from plant materials has been
widely investigated due to their commercial significance as
steroid precursors (Marker et al., 1947; Rothrock et al., 1957).

There is renewed interest on production of sapogenins arising
from evidence on their biological activities, which are being
exploited in a number of applications including pharmaceuticals and cosmetics as described in the section on commercial
applications.
Sapogenins can be produced using chemical (Muir et al.,
2002; Rothrock et al., 1957), enzymatic (Isaac, 1977), or hydrothermal (Wilkins and Holt, 1958; Wilkins and Holt, 1961)
hydrolysis of saponins present in the plant material followed by
extraction with organic solvents (such as methanol, ether, ethylene chloride, benzene, carbon tetrachloride, and ethyl acetate)
(Rothrock et al., 1957; Hershberg and Gould, 1956; Spensley,
1955) or supercritical fluids (Inada et al., 1990; De Crosta et al.,
1993). Alternatively, the hydrolysis can be carried out after solvent extraction of saponins (Wall et al., 1952; Muir et al., 2002)
or after expressing the juice containing saponins (Loken, 1975;
Miramontes, 1959). Hydrolysis and extraction can take place
simultaneously utilizing supercritical fluids (De Crosta et al.,
1993; Inada et al., 1990). In their patent on the extraction of plant
materials using supercritical fluids, De Crosta et al. (De Crosta
et al., 1993) describe a procedure for the extraction of steroid
aglycones such as diosgenin and sarsapogenin from plants (barbasco root and Yucca seed, respectively) using CO2 modified
with 10% chloroform and a pressure gradient of 100300 atm at
250 C, which employs a hydrolysis step during or prior to the
supercritical fluid extraction.
Sample pretreatment steps such as incubation with
(Miramontes, 1959) or without (Gould and Hershberg, 1956) enzymes (carbohydrases such as cellulase and pectinase) and/or the
addition of steroid precursors, saturated hydrocarbons, and plant
growth regulators (Hardman, 1971) have been shown to increase
GUC
LU UST
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AND G. MAZZA
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252
Crude ginseng extract (10 g) in 95% ethanol (40 mL)
Add NaOH (40 mL 5 N)

Reaction at 240C, 3.5 MPa, 1.5 hours
Add HCl (ph=7)
Add H2O (Total volume = 800 mL)

Extract with acetic ester (3 x 100 mL)
3.8 g dried extract
Dissolve ground extract in methanol (20 ml)
Silica gel chromatography
Ether:petroleum benzin (1:3, 60 mL)

PAM-120 (250 mg)
Chloroform:methanol (95:5, 90 mL)

PAN 20 (50 mg)
OH
OH
HO
Glc-O
PBM-100 (45 mg)

OH
HO
OH
Figure 12
Production of dammarane sapogenins from ginseng (adapted from Huang and Qi, 2005).
SAPONINS
the yield of steroid sapogenins. Heating the fermented slurry obtained as waste juice arising from decortication of leaves of the
plant Agave sisalan to temperatures above 140 C under pressure
facilitated the separation of the solids by filtration or centrifugation (Wilkins and Holt, 1958; Wilkins and Holt, 1961).
A recent patent (Huang and Qi, 2005) describes the production of sapogenins from ginseng by reacting a crude ginseng extract with water and a short chain alkali metal alcoholate solution
or hydroxide ethanol solution at high temperature (150300 C)
and pressure (2.58.4 MPa) (Figure 12). Further purification of
the reaction mixture was achieved using silica gel column chromatography to yield novel sapogenins with anti-cancer activity
including PAM-120, PBM-110, PBM-100, PAN-20, and PAN30 (Huang and Qi, 2005).
The aglycones of saponin molecules, such as betulinic
acid and oleanolic acid, are also present in nature as isolated
molecules. In those cases, their isolation from the plant material
only necessitates extraction and purification steps. For example,
betulinic acid was extracted from the bark of trees such as Platanus acerifolia species using medium polarity solvents such as
dichloromethane, chloroform or diethylether followed by crystallization from methanol (Draeger et al., 2001). An herbal extract containing betulinic acid with anticancer activity was produced from ground bark of Zizyphus jujuba by macerating the
bark in solvent (1050% aqueous ethanol) (Mukherjee et al.,
2004). The recognition of the health benefits of oleanolic acid
resulted in the development of processes for the production of
extracts containing oleanolic acid from skins of fruits such as
apples, pears, cranberries, cherries, and prunes using organic
solvents for use in food formulations (Beindorff et al., 2001)
and for the fortification of food products such as olive oil with
oleanolic acid (van Putte, 2002).
CONCLUSIONS
Saponins include a diverse group of compounds characterized
by their structure containing a steroid or triterpenoid aglycone
and one or more sugar chains. Their physicochemical and biological properties, few of which are common to all members of
this diverse group, are increasingly being exploited in food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical sectors. The full realization of their
commercial potential, which is driven by consumer demand for
natural products and increasing evidence of their health benefits, requires development of commercially feasible processes
that can address processing challenges posed by their complex
nature, including their stability. Information on the composition (qualitative and quantitative) and properties of the saponins
present in the raw material, and the effects of processing on
their composition and properties are key elements of successful process design. The abundance of saponins in nature and
their presence in significant quantities in processing by-products
(such as by-products of soybean processing) result in a wide
range of natural materials that can be exploited for commercial
production.
253
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Saponins Properties Applications and Processing

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What are saponins and their main properties?

What are saponins and their main properties?

What are some common applications of saponins?

What are some common applications of saponins?

Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition

ISSN: 1040-8398 (Print) 1549-7852 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/bfsn20

Saponins: Properties, Applications and Processing

Published online: 16 Mar 2007.

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Date: 14 April 2016, At: 20:54

Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 47:231258 (2007)

Saponins: Properties, Applications

and GIUSEPPE MAZZA

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Triterpenes, sapogenins, ginsenosides, health products, surfactants, extraction

due to increasing evidence of their health benefits such as

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(B) SOYA SAPONINS

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glc: D-glucose, ara(p): L-arabinopyranose, ara(f): L-arabinofuranose, rha: L-rhamnose

(D) GLYCYRRHIZIC ACID (GLYCYRRHIZIN)

chickpeas, mungbeans, peanuts, broad beans, kidney beans,

A single plant species may contain a complex mixture of

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STRUCTURE AND PROPERTIES

Saponins are glycosides containing one or more sugar chains

The structural complexity of saponins results in a number

Selected plant sources and their constituent saponins

Acetyl soyasaponins A1 (Ab), A2 (Af),

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Aescin (escin): -aescin, cryptoaescine,

Yoshiki et al., 1998

glycyrrhizin, glycyrrhizinic acid.

saponins were affected by temperature, salt concentration, and

Saponin content of some selected plant materials

Saponin content (%)

Fenwick et al., 1991

Insoluble in water, sol in 65 parts ether,

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C42 H62 O16

Freely soluble in hot water, alcohol,

C35 H61 O24

Very soluble in water and methanol, only

saponins at concentrations > cmc values can be attributed to

of 1.4 mg/mL (Kimata et al., 1985). A significant decrease in

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from licorice roots) and glucuronide esters of glycyrrhizic

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Table 4 Reported biological activities of saponins

olized to soyasapogenol B by human intestinal microorganisms

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Results are expressed as number of deaths per group

food additives has been the subject of thorough reviews (Joint

steroid saponin obtained from Digitalis purpurea), saikosaponin

hypoglycaemic, anti-fertility, and anticariogenic activity (Liu,

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