QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Purchase Article View Shopping Cart Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Liu, Z. Articles by Thompson, L. U. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Liu, Z. Articles by Thompson, L. U.

---

Nutrient Physiology, Metabolism, and Nutrient-Nutrient Interactions

Sesamin Is One of the Major Precursors of Mammalian Lignans in Sesame Seed (Sesamum indicum) as Observed In Vitro and in Rats^1,2

Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada M5S 3E2

⁴ To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: lilian.thompson{at}utoronto.ca.

Plant lignans occur in many foods, with flaxseed presently recognized as the richest source. Some plant lignans can be converted by intestinal microbiota to the mammalian lignans, enterodiol and enterolactone, which may have protective effects against hormone-related diseases such as breast cancer. This study determined whether plant lignans in sesame seed, particularly sesamin, could be metabolized to the mammalian lignans. The total plant lignan concentration in sesame seed (2180 µmol/100 g) was higher than that in flaxseed (820 µmol/100 g). In vitro fermentation with human fecal inoculum showed conversion of sesamin to the mammalian lignans, although at a lower rate (1.1%) compared with that of secoisolariciresinol diglucoside (57.2%). However, when fed to female Sprague-Dawley rats for 10 d, sesamin (15 mg/kg body weight) and a 10% sesame seed diet resulted in greater (P < 0.05) urinary mammalian lignan excretion (3.2 and 11.2 µmol/d, respectively), than the control (< 0.05 µmol/d). We conclude that sesame seed is a rich source of mammalian lignan precursors and sesamin is one of them. From intermediate metabolites of sesamin identified in rat urine by GC-MS, a tentative metabolic pathway of sesamin to mammalian lignans is suggested.

KEY WORDS: • sesamin • sesame lignans • mammalian lignans • metabolism • sesame seed

This article has been cited by other articles:

				J. Chen, K. A. Power, J. Mann, A. Cheng, and L. U. Thompson Flaxseed Alone or in Combination with Tamoxifen Inhibits MCF-7 Breast Tumor Growth in Ovariectomized Athymic Mice with High Circulating Levels of Estrogen Experimental Biology and Medicine, September 1, 2007; 232(8): 1071 - 1080. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				L.-H. Chen, J. Fang, H. Li, W. Demark-Wahnefried, and X. Lin Enterolactone induces apoptosis in human prostate carcinoma LNCaP cells via a mitochondrial-mediated, caspase-dependent pathway Mol. Cancer Ther., September 1, 2007; 6(9): 2581 - 2590. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. M. Sacco, K. A. Power, J. Chen, W. E. Ward, and L. U. Thompson Interaction of Sesame Seed and Tamoxifen on Tumor Growth and Bone Health in Athymic Mice Experimental Biology and Medicine, June 1, 2007; 232(6): 754 - 761. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. A. Moazzami, R. E. Andersson, and A. Kamal-Eldin Quantitative NMR Analysis of a Sesamin Catechol Metabolite in Human Urine J. Nutr., April 1, 2007; 137(4): 940 - 944. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]