BEHAVIOR OF POLYMER-SUPPORTED DIGITONIN WITH CHOLESTEROL IN THE ABSENCE AND PRESENCE OF BUTTER OIL

Digitonin was bound covalently to carboxypolystyrene and carboxymethylpolystyrene via an ester linkage. Polymers were prepared by reacting the polymer acid chloride in pyridine with digitonin or by coupling digitonin directly to the carboxy polymer with dicyclohexylcarbodiimide. Samples containing 0.04 0.23 mmol of digitonin/g of polymer complexed cholesterol from hexane solutions of butter oil or cholesterol. Cholesterol was completely stripped from the polymer samples by room temperature benzene extraction, yielding a reactivated polymer with essentially the same cholesterol-complexing ability as the original polymer. The cholesterol-digitonin complex is stable to isobutyl alcohol extraction. © 1990, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.