Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2017 Feb;56(1):343-353.
doi: 10.1007/s00394-015-1084-x. Epub 2015 Oct 20.

Higher plasma quercetin levels following oral administration of an onion skin extract compared with pure quercetin dihydrate in humans

Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Higher plasma quercetin levels following oral administration of an onion skin extract compared with pure quercetin dihydrate in humans

Constanze Burak et al. Eur J Nutr. 2017 Feb.

Abstract

Purpose: To investigate the plasma kinetics of quercetin derived from hard capsules filled with onion skin extract powder or quercetin dihydrate in humans.

Methods: In a randomized, single-blind, diet-controlled crossover study, 12 healthy subjects (six men and six women) aged 21-33 years were administered a single oral supra-nutritional dose of approximately 163 mg quercetin derived from onion skin extract powder (containing 95.3 % of total flavonoids as quercetin aglycone) or quercetin dihydrate (134 mg quercetin aglycone equivalent). Blood samples were collected before and during a 24-h period after quercetin administration. The concentrations of quercetin and its two monomethylated derivatives, isorhamnetin (3'-O-methyl quercetin), and tamarixetin (4'-O-methyl quercetin), were measured using HPLC with fluorescence detection after plasma enzymatic treatment.

Results: The systemic availability, determined by comparing the plasma concentration-time curves of quercetin, was 4.8 times higher, and the maximum plasma concentration (C max) was 5.4 times higher after ingestion of the onion skin extract than after ingestion of pure quercetin dihydrate. By contrast, t max did not differ significantly between the two formulations. The C max values for isorhamnetin and tamarixetin were 3.8 and 4.4 times higher, respectively, after administration of onion skin extract than after pure quercetin dihydrate. The plasma kinetics of quercetin were not significantly different in men and women.

Conclusion: Quercetin aglycone derived from onion skin extract powder is significantly more bioavailable than that from quercetin dihydrate powder filled hard capsules.

Keywords: Bioavailability; Human study; Onion; Quercetin.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2011 May;111(5):869-73 - PubMed
    1. Adv Nutr. 2011 Jan;2(1):8-14 - PubMed
    1. Br J Nutr. 2009 Oct;102(7):1065-74 - PubMed
    1. Br J Nutr. 2006 Jul;96(1):107-16 - PubMed
    1. J Nutr. 2010 Feb;140(2):278-84 - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources