Inositol

Inositol is a six-carbon compound (C6H12O6) that belongs to the B vitamins. It is present in all living beings and participate in many metabolic pathways. It is known that there are nine possible stereoisomers of inositol (a cyclohexanehexol structure) including myo-, scyllo-, muco-, (+)-chiro, (-)-chiro-, neo-, allo-, epi-, and cis-inositol (figure 1)^[1]. Among them myo-inositol is most common in supplements.

Fig. 1 Structures of the 9 stereoisomers of inositol

Biosynthesis of Inositol

Myo-inositol (cis-1,2,3,5-trans-4,6-cyclohexanehexol), the most abundant form among inositol isomers, is far and wild distributed in the tissues without coma, mammals, plants, fungi, and some bacteria. We mainly introduced the synthesis method of myo-inositol.

The traditional method of producing myoinositol is pressurized acid hydrolysis of phytate. However, the production steps are complicated and cumbersome, with low yield and high production input. Microbial fermentative production of myo-inositol is taken as a viable and cost-effective method. The synthesis pathway of inositol from the precursor glucose-6-phosphate (G-6-P) involves two crucial enzymes, inositol-3-phosphate synthase (IPS) and inositol monophosphatase (IMP). Inositol-3-phosphate synthase, the key rate-limiting enzyme in biosynthesis of inositol, can convert glucose-6-phosphate to the intermediate inositol-3-phosphate (inositol-3-P). The final product inositol is reached by inositol monophosphatase-catalyzed dephosphorylation of inositol-3-phosphate (figure 2)^[2].

Fig. 2 Overview of the inositol biosynthesis pathway in Escherichia coli

Applications

One of inositol's main functions is its involvement as a phospholipid component of cell membranes and lipoproteins. Cell signaling pathways involving phosphoinositide phospholipids lead to a number of cellular responses that are important for cell survival and growth. On a larger scale, inositol appears to be essential for both prenatal and postnatal development of peripheral nerves, central nervous system (CNS) and bone.

• Pharmaceutical

In pharmaceutical, the treatment with different inositol isomers has been demonstrated to generate prominent therapeutic effects in several illnesses, for instance, polycystic ovary syndrome, cancer, diabetes, and neurological disorders.

• Food

Inositol can be used as a nutritional enhancer such as in healthy drinks and baby foods. In addition, as an additive in food, inositol can lower cholesterol, promote healthy hair growth and prevent hair loss, prevent eczema, and increase appetite.

• Cosmetic

In the cosmetics industry, inositol can be used to promote cell growth and prohibit cell aging.

• Animal feed

Lack of inositol in animals may cause growth arrest, hair loss, dermatitis, slow digestion and absorption of food, etc. Inositol can act as a bio-accelerating agent in the feed industry and is used in animal feed to increase the contraction of the digestive tract, promote gastric motility, promote the digestion and absorption of food, and promote the growth of the skin of the moss.

Our Inositol

Our biosynthetic inositol is made from food-grade corn starch. The whole process adopts fully automatic enzyme-catalyzed intelligent production system, and the extraction process adopts pure water extraction.

Alfa Chemistry is a professional supplier of inositol. For high quality products, professional technical service, use suggestion and latest industry news, please feel free to contact us.

References

1. Chatree, S., Thongmaen, N., Tantivejkul, K., Sitticharoon, C., & Vucenik, I. Role of Inositols and Inositol Phosphates in Energy Metabolism. Molecules, 2020, 25(21), 5079.
2. Ran You, Lei Wang, Congrong Shi, et al. Efcient production of myo-inositol in Escherichia coli through metabolic engineering. Microb Cell Fact (2020) 19:109.

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