Study on physiological role of sulfation metabolism: challenges on the synthesis of phenolic sulfates and functional evaluation

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K05881
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 38050:Food sciences-related
• Research Institution: Tokai University
• Principal Investigator: Yasuda Shin 東海大学, 農学部, 教授 (10512923)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 小野 政輝 東海大学, 農学部, 教授 (60177269)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 硫酸化 / フェノール性硫酸体 / 代謝物 / 合成 / 機能性評価

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Sulfation has been generally thought to play a role in the metabolism and inactivation of target compounds; however, the extent of this process has been unclear for individual compounds. In this study, we successfully synthesized the sulfated form of acetaminophen (APAPS) and investigated its antioxidant activity compared to that of the parent compound APAP, an antipyretic and analgesic drug. The results showed that while the antioxidant activity of APAPS was lower than that of APAP, both p-aminophenol and its sulfate, analogous compounds to APAP, exhibited comparable activity. Collectively, we concluded that sulfation may not always lead to the inactivation of target compound(s).

Free Research Field

食品機能科学、食品生化学、薬物代謝化学、健康食品学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

従来、硫酸化は異物代謝と排泄の面のみで考えられがちであった。本研究では、一部のフェノール性化合物を例に有機合成を試み、更に生理活性の増減や減弱に、硫酸化がどの程度貢献しているのかを明らかにした。本研究で得られた成果により、将来的には硫酸化代謝後の化合物の効能を予測するための基礎となる可能性がある。