title: Influence of Intestinal Microbiota on the Catabolism of Flavonoids in Mice.
abstract: Although in vitro studies have shown that flavonoids are metabolized into phenolic acids by the gut microbiota, the biotransformation of flavonoids by intestinal microbiota is seldom studied in vivo. In this study, we investigated the impact of the gut microbiota on the biotransformation of 3 subclasses of flavonoids (flavonols, flavones, and flavanones). The ability of intestinal microbiota to convert flavonoids was confirmed with an in vitro fermentation model using mouse gut microflora. Simultaneously, purified flavonoids were administered to control and antibiotic-treated mice by gavage, and the metabolism of these flavonoids was evaluated. p-Hydroxyphenylacetic acid, protocatechuic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, vanillic acid, hydrocaffeic acid, coumaric acid, and 3-(4-hydroxyphenyl)propionic acid were detected in the serum samples from the control mice after flavonoid consumption. The serum flavonoid concentrations were similar in both groups, whereas the phenolic metabolite concentrations were lower in the antibiotic-treated mice than in the control mice. We detected markedly higher flavonoids excretion in the feces and urine of the antibiotic-treated mice compared to the controls. Moreover, phenolic metabolites were upregulated in the control mice. These results suggest that the intestinal microbiota are not necessary for the absorption of flavonoids, but are required for their transformation.
authors: Dept. of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen Univ, Guangzhou, PR, China.
authors: Weiqun
authors: W
authors: Lin
authors: Dept. of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen Univ, Guangzhou, PR, China.
authors: Wenting
authors: W
authors: Wang
authors: Dept. of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen Univ, Guangzhou, PR, China.
authors: Hai
authors: H
authors: Yang
authors: Dept. of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen Univ, Guangzhou, PR, China.|Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food, Nutrition and Health, Guangzhou, PR, China.
authors: Dongliang
authors: D
authors: Wang
authors: Dept. of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen Univ, Guangzhou, PR, China.|Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food, Nutrition and Health, Guangzhou, PR, China.
authors: Wenhua
authors: W
authors: Ling
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood / Q000652:urine; D001711:Biotransformation; D003373:Coumaric Acids / Q000097:blood; D005243:Feces / Q000737:chemistry; D044950:Flavanones / Q000097:blood / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D005419:Flavonoids / Q000097:blood / Q000493:pharmacokinetics* / Q000652:urine; D044948:Flavonols / Q000097:blood / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D000069196:Gastrointestinal Microbiome; D062385:Hydroxybenzoates / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D010648:Phenylacetates / Q000097:blood; D010666:Phenylpropionates / Q000097:blood; D014641:Vanillic Acid / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D003373:Coumaric Acids; D044950:Flavanones; D005419:Flavonoids; D044948:Flavonols; D062385:Hydroxybenzoates; D010648:Phenylacetates; D010666:Phenylpropionates; C009091:protocatechuic acid; C008070:4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid; C008869:phloretic acid; D014641:Vanillic Acid; C017616:phenolic acid
keywords: flavonoids; gut microbiota, in vivo, metabolite; phenolic acids