Abstract: In order to explore the nutritional effect of egg yolk lecithin on the brain of mice, egg yolk was extracted by sequential organic solvent extraction and purified by silica column chromatography to obtain lecithin with purity of 95.67%. Mice were administered intragastrically with purified lecithin for 30 days and then subjected to Morris water maze test and step-down test. The results showed that the escaping time of experimental mice was shorten significantly (P ＜ 0.05) in the Morris water maze test, and the latency period was extended in the step-down test (P ＜ 0.05) as well as the number of errors was decreased significantly (P ＜ 0.05). These investigations suggested that egg yolk lecithin could improve memory function and promote brain development of mice.

Key words: egg yolk lecithin, Morris water maze test, step-down test, memory function