Bioactive component: Saponin

Saponins are one of the most important classes of natural product. It is a non-volatile glycoside. It consists of aglycone which is fat soluble, that is an either triterpenoid or alkaloid steroids. The aglycone part is covalently linked to one or more monosaccharide sugar moieties. Saponins are found in higher plants as well as some of the marine animals. They are novel bio-organic complex compounds. Saponins have many biological activates, for example, it could decrease serum blood glucose level in diabetic patients, lowering bad cholesterol as well as serum triacylglycerol and it has antitumor activity. Also, it can be used in some beverages, such as beer, to produce stable foam and in the detergent. So, saponins have been entered in numerous of pharmacological actions.