Gender-related similarities and differences in the body distribution of grape seed flavanols in rats

Abstract

Scope: Dietary flavanols produce beneficial health effects, and once absorbed, they are recognized as xenobiotics and undergo phase-II enzymatic detoxification. Flavanols health-promoting properties are mainly attributed to their metabolic products. This work aimed to elucidate whether rats of the opposite sex exhibited differences in the metabolism and distribution of ingested flavanols.

Methods and results: Acute doses of grape seed polyphenols were administered to male and female rats. After 1, 2 and 4 h, plasma, liver, mesenteric white adipose tissue (MWAT), brain and hypothalamus flavanol metabolites were quantified by HPLC-MS/MS. Results indicated important sex-related quantitative differences in plasma and brain. Moreover, remarkable sex-related differences in the distributions and types of flavanol metabolites were also observed between liver and brain.

Conclusions: This study demonstrated that sex differentially influences the metabolism and distribution of flavanols throughout the bodies of rats, which may affect the physiological bioactivities of flavanols between males and females.

Keywords: Bioavailability; Grape seed; Metabolites; Polyphenol; Sex.