title: Mumefural, citric acid derivative improving blood fluidity from fruit-juice concentrate of Japanese apricot (Prunus mume Sieb. et Zucc).
abstract: The effects of food components on blood fluidity were studied by in vitro assay using a dedicated microchannel instrument for model capillaries. We found that the fruit-juice concentrate of the Japanese apricot (Prunus mume Sieb. et Zucc), a traditional Japanese food, markedly improved the fluidity of human blood. Using HPLC, we isolated the active compounds and characterized them using UV, MS, IR, and NMR. They included a novel compound, 1-[5-(2-formylfuryl)methyl] dihydrogen 2-hydroxypropane-1,2, 3-tricarboxylate (mumefural), and a related compound, 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furfural (HMF). Mumefural markedly improved blood fluidity in all subjects, while HMF worked differently in different individuals. The flow rate of blood spiked with mumefural or HMF was compared to that of the two predominant organic acids in the fruit. Citric acid, malic acid, and furfuryl alcohol also improved fluidity in all subjects. The activity of P. mume is derived from not only artifacts produced during thermal processing, such as mumefural, but also from endogenous organic acids.
authors.affiliation: National Food Research Institute, 2-1-2 Kannondai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8642, Japan. chuda@nfri.affrc.go.jp
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chuda
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ono
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ohnishi-Kameyama
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Matsumoto
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nagata
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kikuchi
mesh_terms: D001628:Beverages / Q000032:analysis*; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity / Q000187:drug effects; D001790:Blood Physiological Phenomena / Q000187:drug effects*; D002196:Capillaries / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D019343:Citric Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology; D005638:Fruit / Q000737:chemistry*; D005663:Furans / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D005663:Furans; D010936:Plant Extracts; C412144:mumefural; D019343:Citric Acid