Phosphatidylinositol
Phosphatidylinositol is a glycerophospholipid in which the glycerol backbone carries two fatty acid chains and a phosphate ester linked to the cyclic polyol myo-inositol. It is one of the four principal phospholipids of vegetable lecithin, typically making up around 10 to 15 percent of the phospholipid in soybean lecithin, and it is the acidic member of the group because the inositol phosphate head carries a negative charge at food pH.
That charge makes it behave differently from the zwitterionic phosphatidylcholine. It is more water dispersible, more sensitive to calcium and magnesium ions, and more effective at wetting and dispersing hydrophobic powders, which is why phosphatidylinositol enriched lecithin fractions are used where rapid instantising is needed. In biology it is the precursor of the inositol phosphate signalling lipids, and supplement makers use it as a source of inositol in phospholipid bound form.
Commercial material is an enriched fraction rather than a pure compound, usually a light brown to amber powder or paste. It disperses in water to a turbid dispersion, dissolves in ethanol and chloroform, is insoluble in acetone, and oxidises at the unsaturated fatty acid chains, so it is packed under nitrogen and stored cool and dry.
We source bulk Phosphatidylinositol from top China manufacturers for our partners. The manufacturer is in Guangdong. A smaller requirement can ship in a combined container with other ingredients.
Please send the grade you need, the volume and your destination port, and we will come back with a solution and a price.
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- Function
- Emulsifier
Specifications
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Appearance | Light brown to amber powder or paste |
| Phosphatidylinositol | ≥ 20.0% (on dry basis) |
| Acetone insoluble matter | ≥ 90.0% |
| Identification | Phospholipid profile conforms by HPLC |
| Loss on drying | ≤ 2.0% |
| Acid value | ≤ 36 mg KOH/g |
| Peroxide value | ≤ 10 meq/kg |
| Residual ethanol | ≤ 0.5% |
| Residual acetone | ≤ 0.05% |
| Heavy metals (as Pb) | ≤ 5 mg/kg |
| Lead | ≤ 1 mg/kg |
| Arsenic | ≤ 1 mg/kg |
| Total plate count | ≤ 1,000 cfu/g |
| Yeast and mould | ≤ 100 cfu/g |
| Salmonella | Absent in 25 g |
Common Markets Grades
Pure phosphatidylinositol is a laboratory and pharmaceutical article sold in gram quantities at 95 percent and above and priced accordingly. The industrially traded product is a phosphatidylinositol enriched lecithin fraction, typically 15 to 40 percent phosphatidylinositol with the balance made up of other phospholipids, glycolipids and residual oil, produced as the ethanol insoluble side of a lecithin fractionation. Suppliers specify it on both phosphatidylinositol content and acetone insoluble matter.
The remaining choices are source and form. Soybean lecithin is the usual origin, with sunflower used where a soy free and non-genetically modified declaration is required. Physical form is spray dried powder, granule or a paste standardised in oil, and hydrolysed versions with one fatty acid chain removed are made for greater water dispersibility. Food, feed and pharmaceutical qualities differ in residual solvent, peroxide value and microbiological limits rather than in the phospholipid itself.
Applications
- Instantising of hydrophobic powders such as cocoa, milk powder and protein blends, where the anionic head group speeds wetting
- Dietary supplements, where the enriched fraction supplies inositol and mixed phospholipids
- Infant and clinical nutrition, where it contributes to the phospholipid profile of the fat blend
- Bakery, where the lecithin fraction improves dough handling and crumb softness
- Cell culture and fermentation media, where phospholipids serve as a lipid nutrient source
- Cosmetic emulsions, where it builds lamellar structures and supports skin compatible formulations
- Feed premixes, where the phospholipid fraction improves fat dispersion and digestibility
- Encapsulation systems, where it is combined with other phospholipids to modify liposome surface charge
Brands Using Phosphatidylinositol
Widely-distributed consumer products that list Phosphatidylinositol on the ingredient label.
Brand names, product names and logos are the property of their owners. They appear here as published evidence that the ingredient is used, taken from the brand's own label or website. Their appearance is not an endorsement, and it does not mean the brand buys from us or from any manufacturer listed on this site.
China Manufacturers of Phosphatidylinositol
Top Phosphatidylinositol manufacturers in China.
Company names and logos are the property of the manufacturers themselves. They are listed here because our own directory records them as producing this ingredient. A listing is not an endorsement by them, and we do not represent them or speak on their behalf.
Regulatory Status
Phosphatidylinositol has no additive number of its own. In the European Union it reaches food as a constituent of lecithins, authorised as E 322 under Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, and that entry covers enriched lecithin fractions when they satisfy the identity and purity criteria in the specifications regulation, which limit acetone insoluble matter, acid value, peroxide value and residual solvent. Soy derived material carries an allergen declaration.
In the United States lecithin is affirmed as generally recognised as safe under 21 CFR 184.1400, and phosphatidylinositol enriched fractions used in food fall within that status as lecithin. Material sold as a supplement ingredient is regulated as a dietary ingredient. JECFA has evaluated lecithins and published specifications for them, and lecithins appear in the Codex General Standard for Food Additives as emulsifiers, with phosphatidylinositol addressed as part of that mixture rather than separately.
Manufacturing Process
The route begins with crude lecithin gum recovered when soybean or sunflower oil is degummed with water, then dried under vacuum. The dried lecithin is de-oiled with cold acetone, which dissolves the triglycerides and leaves an acetone insoluble phospholipid powder containing the full phospholipid mixture. That powder is then fractionated with ethanol. Phosphatidylcholine dissolves preferentially in the alcohol, so phosphatidylinositol concentrates in the ethanol insoluble residue together with phosphatidylethanolamine.
The enriched residue is desolventised under vacuum and dried, and for higher purity it is taken through a further chromatographic step on silica or an ion exchange resin, which separates the acidic phosphatidylinositol from the neutral and zwitterionic phospholipids. The purified fraction is concentrated, spray dried or freeze dried, sieved and packed under nitrogen. Solvent residues, peroxide value and phospholipid profile by high performance liquid chromatography are verified on every lot before release.
