In vitro studies of bioaccessibility, intestinal transportation and biotransformation of ent-hardwickiic and ent-polyalthic acids from Copaifera pubiflora and Copaifera duckei oil resins

Abstract

The studies proposed in this project of bioaccessibility, intestinal transportation and biotransformation of diterpenes that are constituents of Copaifera sp. oil resins are new in this research field and it is hoped to bring knowledge that will contribute to the more efficient and safe use of this vegetal raw material. One of the major bottlenecks of Brazilian research is the lack of studies of absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion of natural bioactive compounds, which would facilitate the implementation of some phases of preclinical studies. The population has free and easy access to the medicinal use of several species of Copaifera, and complex matrices, such as oil resins from Copaifera species, may play an important role in the bioaccessibility and absorption of diterpenes. Therefore, the aim of this project is to carry out bioaccessibility studies of the major diterpenes ent-hardwickiic and ent-polyalthic acids from Copaifera pubiflora and Copaifera duckei oil resins, respectively, as well as to evaluate the influence of digestive conditions of the upper gastrointestinal tract in the bioaccessibility of diterpenes. It will be considered all the digestion steps that precede the absorption (salivary, gastric and duodenal abiotic). In this project, it is also intended to carry out studies to evaluate the intestinal absorption of diterpenes in Caco-2 cell models and to investigate the possible intestinal metabolism of diterpenes. In addition, biotransformation processes of diterpenes will be developed using bacteria from the intestinal microbiota and filamentous fungi in order to select one or two promising processes to isolate and elucidate the chemical structures of the major biotransformation products. (AU)