ABSTRACT
A few years ago 4-vinyl-2,6-dimethoxyphenol, also known as canolol, was identied as a potent antioxidative compound in crude canola oil (Wakamatsu, 2001; Koski et al., 2003; Kuwahara et al., 2004; Wakamatsu et al., 2005), its concentration in crude canola oil being about 200 ppm (Wakamatsu, 2001). Canolol exhibits strong alkyl-peroxyl radical scavenging activity and is even more potent in this respect than antioxidants such as α-tocopherol, ascorbic acid, β-carotene, rutin and quercetin (Wakamatsu et al., 2005). Whereas several papers have described the antioxidative properties of canolol, little is known about its antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic activities. In this chapter, the published evidence regarding the antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic properties of canola oil and canolol are summarized and the remaining open questions in this context highlighted.
