Dandelion, inulin

Taraxacum officinale G. H. Weber ex Wigg. Western Pu Gong Ying (Dandelion) (root) Inulin, essential oils, choline, hydroxycinnamic acids, carotenes, ether oils, monoterpene, oxalic acids, hydrocyanic acids, sesquiterpene glucosides, flavonoids, hydroxybenzoic acid, coumarins, anthocyanidines, anthraquinones, phytosterines, squalene, cerylic alcohol, arabinose, vitamins , , C.88-222-450 Sudorific, stomachic, tonic, a remedy for sores, boils, ulcers, abscesses, snakebites. 

In nature, fmctose (levulose, fruit sugar) is the main sugar in many fruits and vegetables. Honey contains ca 50 wt % fmctose on a dry basis. Sucrose is composed of one unit each of fmctose and dextrose combined to form the disaccharide. Fmctose exists in polymeric form as inulin in plants such as Jerusalem artichokes, chicory, dahlias, and dandelions, and is liberated by treatment with acid or enzyme. 

The patent discloses a suggested food additive composition, containing fiber, vitamins, and mineral substances. The suggested plant sources of pectin and inulin are dandelion... 

Polysaccharides that exclusively contain D-fructose are known as fructans and there are two known kinds, inulin and levan. Inulin is a polysaccharide containing -D-fructofuranose linked (2 1) [118]. Inulins are found in the roots and tubers of the family of plants known as the Compositae, which includes asters, dandelions, dahlias, cosmos, burdock, goldenrod, chicory, lettuce, and Jerusalem artichokes. Other sources are from the Liliacae family, which includes lily bulbs, onion, hyacinth, and tulip bulbs. Inulins are also produced by certain species of algae [119]. Several bacterial strains of Streptococcus mutans also produce an extracellular inulin from sucrose [120]. 

Fructans occur naturally, are predominantly found in plants, fungi, and are produced extra-cellularly by bacteria such as Streptococcus mutans [13]. Plants are the most likely source of inulin for the production of material to be incorporated into foodstuffs due to its abundance in plants and also from a safety perspective. Inulin is found in the tubers and roots of the plant family Compositae which includes aster, dandelion, dahlias, comos, burdock, goldenrod, chicory, lettuce, and Jerusalem artichoke [14,15]. Van Loo et al. [16] identified the quantity of inulin in various plants as well as their degree of polymerization (O Table 3). An extensive review of occurrence and distribution of fructans in nature is provided [16,17,18]. 

Taraxacum. Dandelion lion s tooth. Dried [hi -zome and roots of Taraxacum palustre (Lyons) Lam. DC. (T. officinale Weber, Leontodon taraxacum L.), Compositae. Habit. Europe naturalized in North America. Constit. Taraxerol, choline, levulin, inulin, pectin. 

Inulin, (CeHioOs) , is a starch-like substance which occurs in the roots of the dandelion and chicory, in the tubers of the potato and dahlia, in certain lichens, and in other vegetable substances. Inulin is a white powder, composed of minute spheres it is slightly soluble in cold water, and very soluble in hot water. An aqueous solution of inulin does not form a jelly, is not colored by iodine, is not fermentable, and is not affected by diastase. It is levorotatory, [o ]d = —36.6°. 

For polysaccharides, even the shorthand notation is unwieldy. Most of these compounds are given common names and, because they are usually polymeric, the repeating monosaccharide or disaccharide units are often shown. Many of these are homopolymers that is, the poly(saccharide) is formed by coupling only one monosaccharide unit. Cellulose, for example, is a linear poly(glucopyranose) coupled in a (l- 4) P-d manner as shown in 66, it is a major constituent of plant cell walls. Amylose (a constituent of starch) is a linear poly(glucopyranose) coupled (1 4)-a-d (see 67), and inulin (found in dandelions) is a linear fructofuranose coupled (2— l)-P-d (see 68). 

INULIN, or Dahlia starch, is the commonest example of a fructosan, or polymer of fructose. It is a reserve carbohydrate found in the roots and leaves of Composite and other plants. The chief sources are the tuber of the Dahlia, which contains 10 per cent., the Jerusalem Artichoke, Chicory, and Dandelion. It is not found in animals. Inulin is a white, tasteless powder, closely resembling starch, but giving no colour with iodine. Its solutions are laevo-rotatory, [a] = — 40°, non-reducing, and not hydrolysable by amylases. When acted on by acids or the enzyme inulase, which accompanies it in the plant, inuhn is converted completely into fructose. 

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