A study of lipolytic activity in germinating soya bean seeds: A report on experimental work submitted in part requirement for the degree of B.Agr.Sci. with Honours in Biochemistry

Abstract

Soya bean (Glycine max) is one of the world's major sources of vegetable oil and protein. The first record of cultivated soya bean dates back to 2838 B.C. in Eastern Asia, where it is one of the five sacred grains on which the Chinese civilisation is based. Its significance in Europe and America has increased greatly in the last century, especially since the Second World War. Soya bean oil is used as a human food, particularly as salad oil, and in margarine and shortening. Industrially it is used in the manufacture of paints,linoleum, oilcloth, printing inks, soap, insecticides, disinfectants, etc. The meal left after oil extraction is of value as a stock food because of the high protein content and can be used as a source of protein for the manufacture of synthetic fibres. These are just a few of the commercial uses of soya bean, and serve to illustrate the economic importance of this legume . Because of the importance of soya bean oil, it was considered ·worthwhile to study the process by which it is broken down in the germinating seed. The original goal of this study was to investigate lipolytic activity in the germinating seed with respect to pH optimum, temperature optimum, course of development during germination, inhibitors, activators, and co-enzymes, with the eventual isolation and purification of the seed lipase. These aims seemed reasonable because of the high lipid content of this seed, and reports of lipolytic activity in it.