Kinetic Studies of Functional Food Materials

Following ingestion, food constituents are distributed after being absorbed mainly by the small intestine and then excreted after metabolization in the liver. This set of transition processes of those constituents, from absorption to excretion, is referred to as kinetics.
Kinetics is important for evaluating the effects of food constituents on the body, as related factors, such as rate of absorption into the body and metabolic capacity, can fluctuate depending on individual differences, as well as types of food and beverage intake. However, scientific knowledge of kinetics regarding food constituents is not as advanced as that of pharmaceuticals. Kao is putting effort into development of methods for predicting kinetics of food constituents for better understanding of food safety and efficacy.
For example, kinetic analysis of green tea catechins at the molecular level has been successfully performed by identifying transporters in charge of transport into and outside of cells, as well as metabolic enzymes involved in structural changes of catechins. Furthermore, by use of physiochemical information derived from the chemical structure of food constituents and biological information, such as body weight and blood flow rate, together with kinetic information, a physiologically-based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) model for predicting kinetics has been developed.
This model can be used for predicting the kinetics of food constituents, and is also applicable for analysis of those when ingested simultaneously with other food constituents or pharmaceutical drugs. Furthermore, it can be utilized for understanding individual and ethnic differences in regard to the safety and efficacy of functional food constituents.