phytoestrogens and n-hexane

The purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of soybean extracts obtained using different extraction methods on the skin of female rats.. A total of 64 female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 8 equal groups. Various extracts were administered to the female rats by oral gavage for one month. The groups comprised carboxymethyl cellulose-free control, carboxymethyl cellulose-plus control, 100-mg/kg n-hexane extract, 200-mg/kg n-hexane extract, 100-mg/kg ethyl acetate extract, 200-mg/kg ethyl acetate extract, 100-mg/kg ethanol extract and 200-mg/kg ethanol extract groups. The thickness of the collagen layer and the number of estrogen receptor-positive cells were evaluated.. All the extract-treated groups showed a statistically significant decrease in the number of estrogen receptor-positive cells compared with the control groups. Regarding the thickness of the collagen layer, only the 200-mg/kg ethyl acetate extract-treated group showed a significant increase compared with the control groups (p<0.05).. Our data suggest that oral intake of three different total soybean extracts might have positive estrogenic effects on the skin and that only a high-dose ethyl acetate extract can increase the expression of collagen, which may prove to be beneficial for postmenopausal facial skin.

Topics: Acetates; Animals; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Collagen; Ethanol; Female; Glycine max; Hexanes; Immunohistochemistry; Phytoestrogens; Plant Extracts; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Receptors, Estrogen; Reference Values; Reproducibility of Results; Skin; Time Factors