Due to the higher concentration of isoflavones in the soybean hypocotyls, the food industry has used this component of the bean as a raw material. This paper reports the isoflavone contents found in the different parts of the bean (hypocotyl, cotyledon and hull) as analyzed by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). Four special soybean cultivars, BRS 184, BRS 216, BRS 257 and BRS 267, developed by Embrapa Soybean, were evaluated. All the cultivars presented higher contents of total isoflavones in the hypocotyls (average of 2029.32 mg.100 g-1). The isoflavone contents of the whole beans (267.16 mg.100 g-1) and the cotyledons (209.16 mg.100 g-1) were about 10 times lower than that of the hypocotyls. Cultivar BRS 216 presented the highest total isoflavone content in the hypocotyl (2583.20 mg.100 g-1). Although soybean hulls do not contain isoflavones, an average of 105.57 mg.100 g-1 was found in this component, due to the presence of hypocotyl and cotyledon residues resulting from the hulling process. This residual composition of the hulls favors their use as a raw material that is a source of fibers, also providing isoflavones and other soybean compounds.
Special soybean cultivars; Isoflavones; Aglycones; HPLC
