Flaxseed cyanogenic glycosides

Ten Canadian flaxseed cultivars were analyzed for total cyanide content (Chadha, 1995) and contents of individual cyanogenic glycosides (Oomah et al., 1992). Chadha et al. (1995) determined cyanide content in 10 cultivars of flaxseed using an autohydrolysis method that required up to 5 hours of hydrolysis time. The maximum cyanide values were typically obtained... 

Various methods could be used to reduce the cyanogenic glycosides content in the seed. Wanasundara et al. (1993) investigated the use of solvents extraction as a means to reduce cyanogenic glycosides content of flaxseed meal. They found that extraction of flaxseed with alkanol-ammonia-water/ hexane resulted in enhanced removal of cyanogenic compounds from 41 to... 

Kobaisy, M., Oomah, B.D., and Mazza, G. 1996. Determination of cyanogenic glycosides in flaxseed by barbituric acid-pyridine, pyridine-pyrazolone, and high-performance liquid chromatography methods. J. Agric. Food Chem. 44, 3178-3181. 

The aliphatic cyanogenic glycosides of flaxseed are referred to as bound cyanide. The molecular HCN is regarded as free non-glycosidic cyanide. Under normal physiological conditions, tissues of cyanophoric plants contain little or no detectable HCN. When plant tissues are disrupted, HCN may be released rapidly from cyanogenic glycosides... 

Figure 2. Removal of cyanogen c glycosides of flaxseed due to two-phase solvent extraction with methanol-am-monia-water/hexane (95 10 5, v/w/v) (A) change in water content, (B) change in contact time and meal-to-solvent ratio and (C) change in the number of extraction cycles.

---