Diosgenins . Saponins are heterosides that consist of a glucidic part (with one or more sugars) and a lipid soluble element, which may be triterpene or steroid in nature (among them the diosgenins), which derive from a hexacyclic skeleton of 27 carbon atoms, which is the nucleus spirostane.
Natural distribution
Steroid saponins are found in several families of the monocot class, such as: Dioscoreaceae ( Dioscorea villosa ), Liliaceae , and Agavaceae . In the case of dicotyledons, they are present in the Solanaceae family . In the animal kingdom, starfish are the only example of animals with steroid saponins.
Importance
- Diosgenins are of great importance for the pharmaceutical industry since they are used as precursors for the hemisynthesis of steroidal active ingredients ( anti-inflammatories , androgens, estrogens , diuretics ) and as oral contraceptives.
- Saponins have the ability to increase blood circulation at the renal level, which increases glomerular filtration and therefore has a diuretic effect.
- Some saponins are toxic to mollusks , which is why they are used as molluscicides, since it breaks the chain of transmission of schistosomiasis.
- They are of great importance to the pharmaceutical industry for their detergent and emulsifying properties.
- In contact with the blood they are hemolytic, since they interact with the cholesterol of the membrane of the erythrocytes.
- They are widely used in medicine for their expectorant effects.