Page 9 - Technical Saw Palmetto Booklet

MTC Industries, Inc.
Herbsine Bioengineering Co., Ltd.

4. Saponification Value and Acid Value

Saponification value is a simple way to measure total amount of fatty acids in oil. The
higher the saponification value, the more fatty acids. The acid value is a sign of free
fatty acid content.
During long-term preservation of fat, it is slowly hydrolyzed by the action of
microorganisms, enzymes and heat, resulting in free fatty acids. Therefore, the acid
value can be used as an indicator of the degree of hydrolysis or rancidity of oil during
preservation. The smaller the acid value, the better the quality of the oil (Freshness and
refining is also better).
However, saw palmetto is a special plant, and its oil contains very high free fatty acids.
At present USP specifies that the saponification value of saw palmetto oil should be in
the range of 210-250, and the acid value has not yet been specified.
EP 9.0 specifies that the saponification value of saw palmetto oil should be in the range
of 220-250, and the acid value should be in the range of 150-220.
It is believed that the acid value/saponification value should be in the range of
50.5-76.5%. In some years, the ratio may be as high as 90% or more, which is also a
way to identify the authenticity of saw palmetto oil.

SN-180401 UV-171023 EE-1800628 USP40 EP9.0
Saponification value (SV) 249 243 246 210-250 220-250
Acid value (AV) 203 192 200 N/A 150-220
AV/SV, % 81.5 79.0 81.3 N/A N/A
Table-2 Saponification value and Acid value content of various saw palmetto oils

5. Content of Sterols

Sterols are main components of unsaponifiable matter in oil, which include stigmasterol,
β-sitosterol, campesterol, stigmastanol, cholesterol, brassicasterol, avenasterol, and
gramisterol. USP36 specifies saw palmetto oil contains 0.2-0.5% of total sterols
(cholesterol, campesterol, stigmasterol, β-sitosterol, and stigmastanol), while USP39
specifies saw palmetto oil contains NLT 0.1% of β-sitosterol, and NLT 0.2% the total
sterols (campesterol, stigmasterol, β-sitosterol, and stigmastanol). We study two main
sterols as following:

SN-180401 UV-171023 EE-1800628
β-sitosterol, % 0.29 0.34 0.20
Stigmasterol, % 0.17 0.20 0.028
Total sterols, % 0.46 0.54 0.23
Table-3 Sterols content of various saw palmetto oils, Assay by GC

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