Dietary polyphenols are thought to be beneficial for human health as antioxidants. Coffee beans contain a common polyphenol, chlorogenic acid. Chlorogenic acid is the ester of caffeic acid and quinic acid. Although these polyphenols have received much attention, there is little evidence indicating a relationship between the effect and the rate of absorption. In this study, we focused on the beneficial effects of chlorogenic acid and caffeic acid, a major metabolite of chlorogenic acid. We carried out in vitro and in vivo experiments. In the in vitro study, caffeic acid had stronger antioxidant activity than that of chlorogenic acid. The uptake of chlorogenic acid by Caco-2 cells was much less than that of caffeic acid. The physiological importance of an orally administered compound depends on its availability for intestinal absorption and subsequent interaction with target tissues. We then used an intestinal ischemia-reperfusion model to evaluate antioxidant activities in vivo. We found that both chlorogenic acid and caffeic acid had effects on intestinal ischemia-reperfusion injury. Since caffeic acid has a stronger antioxidant activity than that of chlorogenic acid and chlorogenic acid is hydrolyzed into caffeic acid in the intestine, it is possible that caffeic acid plays a major role in the protective effect of chlorogenic acid against ischemia-reperfusion injury.

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These findings indicate that lutein has anti-inflammatory effects on EIU by inhibiting the NF-kappaB dependent signaling pathway and the subsequent production of proinflammatory mediators.

Interest has recently been shown again in colistin because of the increased prevalence of infections caused by multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. Although the potential for nephrotoxicity is a major dose-limiting factor in colistin use, little is known about the mechanisms that underlie colistin-induced nephrotoxicity. In this study, we focused on an endocytosis receptor, megalin, that is expressed in renal proximal tubules, with the aim of clarifying the role of megalin in the kidney accumulation and nephrotoxicity of colistin. We examined the binding of colistin to megalin by using a vesicle assay. The kidney accumulation, urinary excretion, and concentrations in plasma of colistin in megalin-shedding rats were also evaluated. Furthermore, we examined the effect of megalin ligands and a microtubule-depolymerizing agent on colistin-induced nephrotoxicity. We found that cytochrome c, a typical megalin ligand, inhibited the binding of colistin to megalin competitively. In megalin-shedding rats, renal proximal tubule colistin accumulation was decreased (13.5 ؎ 1.6 and 21.3 ؎ 2.6 g in megalin-shedding and control rats, respectively). Coadministration of colistin and cytochrome c or albumin fragments resulted in a significant decrease in urinary N-acetyl-␤-D-glucosaminidase (NAG) excretion, a marker of renal tubular damage (717.1 ؎ 183.9 mU/day for colistin alone, 500.8 ؎ 102.4 mU/day for cytochrome c with colistin, and 406.7 ؎ 156.7 mU/day for albumin fragments with colistin). Moreover, coadministration of colistin and colchicine, a microtubule-depolymerizing agent, resulted in a significant decrease in urinary NAG excretion. In conclusion, our results indicate that colistin acts as a megalin ligand and that megalin plays a key role in the accumulation in the kidney and nephrotoxicity of colistin. Megalin ligands may be new targets for the prevention of colistininduced nephrotoxicity.