ARS | Publication request: Pharmacokinetics of nobiletin and tangeretin in rat blood serum

Submitted to: Subtropical Technology Conference Proceedings
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: October 16, 2010
Publication Date: N/A

Technical Abstract: Citrus juice is a rich source of putatively health-beneficial compounds including flavonoids, limonoids, vitamins and others. Flavonoids are phenolic compounds, or derivatives thereof, that can act as antioxidants, and thus protect against cellular oxidative damage. The high concentrations of these compounds can therefore be a useful marketing tool to increase sales of orange juice. Better validation of the beneficial effects of the citrus flavonoids in humans will promote a higher level of awareness in the general public of the health benefits of citrus products. To better understand the influences of these compounds in humans, we studied the appearance of two of the citrus flavonoids, nobiletin and tangeretin, in the blood serum of rats fed these compounds. These studies were done by using HPLC coupled to a mass spectrometer detector. The mass spectrometer allows for the detection of trace levels of these compounds, down to 2 picograms. The findings from this study helped us to know how long these compounds remain in the blood stream of animals fed these compounds. We found that nobiletin and tangeretin remained in the blood of rats for at least 24 hours, with peak concentrations occurring prior 1 hour. For tangeretin, the appearance of metabolites T1 and T2 occurred more slowly with peak concentrations around 4 hours. This long presence in the blood stream is different from many other flavonoids in other fruits and vegetables which disappear much more quickly. This research provides information about citrus flavonoids that may be useful in marketing products derived from citrus.