Isolation and quantitation of lectins from vegetable oils

The factor(s) responsible for the unexplained atherogenicity of peanut oil remain to be elucidated. To this end, we developed a technique to determine if lectin was present in the oil and to quantitate its concentration. This technique was applied to other vegetable oils including corn, soybean, and sunflower. Crude, unprocessed corn and soybean oils were also analyzed for lectin content. The crude oils contained from 858 to 2983 micrograms lectin per kg, while the refined oils contained 24 to 55 micrograms/kg of biologically active lectin. The identities of the isolated lectins were confirmed by electrophoresis on SDS-polyacrylamide gels. The biological significance of the presence of lectin in these oils remains to be determined.