Saponins are widely distributed in plants. Characteristic for saponins is their ability to produce a large amount of foam in aqueous solutions, which justifies their name derived from Latin: sapo = soap.

In general, saponins dissolve easily in water, methanol and aqueous ethanol, but are insoluble in absolute ethanol, acetone, diethyl ether, benzene, carbon disulphide or chloroform.

Saponins are found in many daily used products, such as photographic paper or toothpaste. However, this is only the tip of the iceberg, as we have yet to fully explore all the areas in which saponins may be used. If you are interested in further applications for saponins, click on MORE.