Abstract

DETERMINING THE EFFECT OF GARLIC, PEPPER, ONION, FENUGREEK AND CURRY-LEAVES ON EGG-CHOLESTEROL USING RP-HPLC METHOD

N. Mallikarjuna Rao* and D. Gowri Sankar

ABSTRACT

Cholesterol is a wax like substance found in every living cell in the body. A typical egg contains 2:1 ratio of albumen (white) to yolk. Included in the fat of the yolk are 1.075% cholesterol and 7.31% lecithin. Our project aims at reducing the cholesterol present in egg, by the use of food materials which we regularly consume, so that it could be of some use to all those persons having sedentary lifestyles or with busy schedule and has no time for regular exercise. Hence fenugreek (Trigonella foenum graecum), Garlic (Allium sativum), Ginger (Zingiber officinale), Pepper (Piper nigrum), and curry leaves (Murraya koenigii Spreng) were selected to check whether they have any effect in-vitro, on egg cholesterol using RP-HPLC method. The HPLC apparatus consisted of Model LC 10 AT pumps (SHIMADZU®) and cholesterol was quantified by an isocratic mixture of acetonitrile-2-propanol (1:3). It was concluded that pepper was the most effective cholesterol fighter, followed by curry-leaves. Hence it’s advisable to include pepper in our daily diet, along with egg, either in raw or cooked form, and curry-leaves in its cooked form, to reduce cholesterol levels.

Keywords: Cholestrol, egg, pepper, curry-leaves, RP-HPLC.