Phytosterol and phytostanols

To create a technology landscape report on Phytosterols and Phytostanols

• Identify market players with prolific IP activity in the technology area
• Segment the players by the industry they belong to

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Phytosterols (plant sterols) are triterpenes that are important structural components of plant membranes. Phytosterols (PS) are similar to cholesterol both in structure (but have different side chain configurations) and in function (Fernandes & Cabral, 2007).PS exist in free or esterified forms: free sterols form part of the cellular wall, where they play important structural functions, whereas sterol esters represent storage products within the cell. The most commonly encountered PS in higher plants is β-sitosterol, campesterol and stigmasterol. Saturated plant sterol derivatives are termed as plant stanols or phytostanols. They are produced by the hydrogenation of sterols and are not abundant in nature. Saturation of phytosterols by commercial hydrogenation processes, including the saturation of sitosterol and campesterol to produce phytostanol compounds such as sitostanol and campestanol (Clifton, 2002).

Dietary sources

Plant fats and oils contain phytosterols as naturally occurring constituents. The most important natural sources of plant sterols in human diets are oils and margarines, although they are also found in a range of seeds, legumes, vegetables and unrefined vegetable oils. Sterols make up the largest proportion of the unsaponifiable fraction of lipids. Other significant source of plant sterols are nuts, grains, and grain derived products; also sprouts, cabbages, cauliflowers, green and black olives (Marangoni & Poli,2010). The important sources of phytosterols in shown in Table 1.

The major sources of plant sterols used for incorporation into commercial products are tall oil and the by-products of edible oil production. Sterol and stanol esters can be obtained from tall oil, a phytosterol-rich by-product from pulping of pine and other trees.In such process, tall oil phytosterols are refined, purified, and then esterified with food-grade fatty acids. Phytosterols can also derive from vegetable oil refining, especially during the deodorizing process; a short-path distillation technique (molecular distillation) can lead to the extraction of large amounts of phytosterols.

Both sterols and stanols are frequently used in esterified forms, as fatty acid esters: this increases their solubility and allows their incorporation into lipid-based foods.

Health benefits

The consumption of both free and saturated plant sterols and their ester derivatives has the potential for reducing cholesterol absorption and improving circulation of lipids. The suppression of cholesterol absorption was the chief mechanism responsible for lowering plasma cholesterol levels, and the partial suppression of the resulting increase in cholesterol biosynthesis was a secondary action. Epidemiological data suggest that the PS content of the diet is associated with a reduction in the incidence of common cancers including cancers of the lung, stomach, colon, breast, and prostate (A. de Jong et al., 2003).

The development of food technology has created some foods enriched with phytostanols and phytosterols. At present, several functional food product types such as yoghurts and milk with added plant sterols and stanols are available on the market.

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• Concept Table was enriched by searches related to phytosterols and phytostanols, relevant patents, scientific articles and various thesauri

IPC/ ECLA

US Class

F-Terms

Thomson innovation

• Time line: 1991 to September 23,2011
• Databases: US Grant, GB App, US App, FR App, WO App, DE Util, EP Grant, DE Grant, EP App, DE App, JP Util, JP Grant, JP App, CN Util, CN App, KR Util , KR Grant, KR App, DWPI

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Top Assignees

Top Assignees

Top Assignees in the Food Industry

Top Assignees in the Food Ingredient Suppliers

Top Assignees in the Personal Care Industry

Top Assignees in the Health Care Industry

IP Activity

IP activity based on priority year

IP activity based on publication year

Geographical Distribution

Geographical distribution of assignees

Geographical distribution of patents

Geographical Distribution of Patent Family Members

Assignees were categorized based on the type of their products viz. food,food ingredients, Personal care, Health care,other industries, research and educational institutions etc and their patents have been shown in the Dolcera Interactive Dashboard.

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Some products with respect to this technology area were identified and mapped to the patents from their respective assignees.

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• Database : Scirus
• Timeline : 1991 - 2011
• Subject Areas : Agricultural and Biological Sciences; Chemistry and Chemical Engineering; Engineering, Energy and Technology; Life Sciences; Medicine and Pharmacology.
• Information Types : Abstracts, Articles, Articles in Press, Books, Conferences and Reviews.

Relevant Scientific Articles

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• The following graphs explain the placement of different Research Institutes and Universities in this technological area.

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