Formation of phytosterol photooxidation products: A chemical reaction mechanism for light-induced oxidation

Phytosterols (PS) are a group of sterols distributed in foods and plants, where it is prone to oxidation. In this work, we studied the reaction mechanism of phytosterols, using density functional theory (DFT) calculation and experimental methods to study the photooxidation of phytosterols. Under LED light illumination, experimental photooxidation of these phytosterols gives rise to the prior three kind oxides of phytosterol: 6 alpha-OH, 7 alpha-OH, and 7 beta-OH. The mechanistic investigations by DFT suggest that singlet oxygen (O-1(2))-mediated photooxidation (Type II mechanism) generated radical adds to the C5 and C6 on the B Ring of steroid nucleus and reaction in C7 initiated from C5 products through rearrangement pathway. Furthermore, the stereoselectivity at C5, C6 and C7 provides a mechanistic guide for phytosterols photooxidation. These efforts are expected to serve as an essential exploratory study for the oxidation mechanism of phytosterols in the complex food matrix and antioxidation technology for phytosterols.