Autors: Vincent de Boer, Ashwin A. Dihal et al

Research Institute: Rikilt Institute of Food Safety (Wageningen University, The Netherlands), TNO (Zeist, The Nederlands), Institute of Animal Nutrition and Physiology (Christian Albrechts University, Germany).

Publication: J. Nutr. 135:1718-1725, July 2005

Quercetin is a plant polyphenolic phytochemical with many potential health benefits. Most studies have been carried out in vitro with quercetin aglycone and not much information is available on the availability of quercetin to the body tissues. This is the first study to investigate the distribution of dietary quercetin in different tissues (lungs, brains, heart, spleen and liver).

This study was carried out on rats and pigs. Two groups of rats were each given diets containing 0.1% and 1% quercetin, during a period of 11 weeks. The pigs were fed with a diet containing 500 mg quercetin per kg body weight and took only 3 days.

The levels of quercetin and quercetin metabolites were measured in different tissues. In rats, the highest levels of quercetin were measured in the lungs, whereas in pigs the highest levels of quercetin were found in liver and kidney.