Drug – bio-affecting and body treating compositions – Designated organic active ingredient containing – Radical -xh acid – or anhydride – acid halide or salt thereof...
Reexamination Certificate
2001-03-16
2002-09-10
Weddington, Kevin E. (Department: 1614)
Drug, bio-affecting and body treating compositions
Designated organic active ingredient containing
Radical -xh acid, or anhydride, acid halide or salt thereof...
C514S560000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06448292
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an oil or fat (hereafter referred to as “oil” merely) composition which effectively develops physiological functions derived from &ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acids, such as antiarteriosclerotic effect, and is excellent in oxidation stability, flavor and the like, and foods and medicines comprising such an oil composition.
2. Description of the Background Art
In recent years, it has been clarified that diglycerides have an obesity-preventing effect, an effect to prevent an increase in weight, etc. (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 300828/1992, 300826/1992 and 300825/1992, etc.), and it is attempted to incorporate these into various kinds of foods.
On the other hand, it has been known that &ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acids such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) are mainly contained in the form of triglyceride in fish oil and the like in plenty and have effective physiological activities such as antiarteriosclerotic effect, antitumor activity, immune activation, antiallergic activity, improvement in brain function and improvement in visual function.
As oils highly containing such diglycerides and &ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acids, there have been known, for example, a natural oil that DHA among constitutive fatty acids of the oil is contained in a proportion of at least 60%, and the total content of diglycerides and monoglycerides is at least 80% of the oil (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 60181/1996), and the like. In addition, there has been known a high unsaturated fatty acid-containing oil composition having a glyceride composition that the total amount of monoglycerides and diglycerides is greater than the amount of triglycerides, and enhanced in hydration property (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 265795/1998).
However, the &ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acids are very poor in oxidation stability. When a &ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acid is oxidized, the oxidized unsaturated fatty acid involves a problem that not only its physiological activity functions are lost, but also the a living body is adversely affected when such an unsaturated fatty acid is taken. In addition, a &ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acid-containing oil has an unpleasant flavor derived from its raw oil, and so a problem is offered when it is used in food in particular. Further, &ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acids involve a problem that when they are converted into their corresponding diglycerides, the diglycerides do not become liquid at the temperature of the living body, so that the physiological activities of the &ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acids are hard to be developed.
There is a demand for solution of a conflicting problem that when a &ohgr;3 type unsaturated acyl content is lowered in order to avoid these problems, the development of the physiological activity functions, which is an object of incorporation, is deteriorated.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an oil composition which is hard to be oxidized, is excellent in flavor and liquid at the temperature of a living body and has high physiological activities of &ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acids, and foods and medicine comprising such an oil composition.
The present inventors have attracted attention to the compositions of acyl groups constituting a diglyceride and a triglyceride and found that when c3 type unsaturated acyl groups as acyl groups constituting a diglyceride and a linoleyl group (cis,cis-9,12-octadecadienoyl group) as an acyl group constituting a triglyceride are contained in specified amounts in an oil composition comprising a diglyceride in a specified amount, the above object can be achieved.
According to the present invention, there is thus provided an oil composition comprising a diglyceride, in which at least 55% by weight (hereafter indicated merely by “%”) of the constitutive acyl groups are unsaturated acyl groups, and 15 to 100% thereof are &ohgr;3 type unsaturated acyl groups having at least 20 carbon atoms, in an amount of not less than 10%, but less than 40%, and a triglyceride, in which at least 70% of the constitutive acyl groups are unsaturated acyl groups, and 5 to 80% thereof are a linoleyl group, in an amount of 40.1 to 89.8%.
According to the present invention, there is also provided a food comprising such an oil composition.
According to the present invention, there is further provided a medicine comprising such an oil composition.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
In the present invention, the acyl groups constituting a diglyceride include &ohgr;3 unsaturated acyl groups having at least 20 carbon atoms, preferably 20 to 24 carbon atoms in a proportion of 15 to 100%, preferably 20 to 90%, particularly preferably 40 to 70% based on all the acyl groups in the diglyceride. In order to effectively achieve the physiologically active effect of &ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acids, it is necessary to contain &ohgr;3 unsaturated acyl groups having at least 20 carbon atoms in an amount of at least 15%. The term “&ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acid” as used herein means an acyl group that a first unsaturated bond is located on the third carbon atom from a &ohgr; position when the positions of unsaturated bonds are specified from the &ohgr; position, and that has at least 2 unsaturated bonds. As the &ohgr;3 type unsaturated acyl groups having at least 20 carbon atoms, are particularly preferred eicosapentaenoyl and docosahexaenoyl groups.
In the present invention, the number of carbon atoms in remaining acyl groups constituting the diglyceride is preferably 8 to 24, particularly 16 to 22. In order to maintain the oil composition according to the present invention in a liquid state at the temperature of a living body, the unsaturated acyl groups must be contained in a proportion of at least 55%, preferably at least 70%, particularly preferably at least 80% based on all the acyl groups in the diglyceride.
The unsaturated acyl groups are preferably contained in a proportion of at most 98% from the viewpoints of production cost and effect.
The diglyceride can be obtained by an optional process such as transesterification of any of various oils such as fish oil and rapeseed oil containing &ohgr;3 type unsaturated acyl groups, monoenoic acyl groups with glycerol and the like or esterification of a fatty acid derived from such an oil with glycerol. The reaction method thereof may be either a chemical reaction method making use of an alkali catalyst or the like or a biochemical reaction method making use of an enzyme such as lipase. The content of such a diglyceride in the oil composition according to the present invention must be not lower than 10%, but lower than 40%, and is particularly preferably 15 to 35%. When the content is not lower than 10%, but lower than 40%, the development of physiological activities derived from the (93 type unsaturated fatty acids is easily consistent with oxidation stability in cooperation with a linoleyl group in the triglyceride.
In the present invention, the acyl groups constituting a triglyceride include a linoleyl group in a proportion of 5 to 80%, preferably 7 to 55%, more preferably 7 to 45%, particularly preferably 10 to 30% based on all the acyl groups in the triglyceride. In order to maintain the oil composition according to the present invention in a liquid state at the temperature of a living body and to avoid side effect by &ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acids, the linoleyl group must be contained in a proportion of at least 5% based on all the acyl groups in the triglyceride. The linoleyl group may be preferably contained in a proportion of at most 80% from the viewpoints of the physiologically active effect of the &ohgr;3 type unsaturated fatty acids and oxidation stability.
In the present invention, the number of carbon atoms in remaining acyl groups constituting the triglyceride is preferably 8 to 24, particularly 16 to 22. In order to maintain the oil
Hosoya Naoki
Koike Shin
Yasumasu Takeshi
Kao Corporation
Weddington Kevin E.
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