Peanut-skin polyphenols, procyanidin A1 and epicatechin-(4β→6)- epicatechin-(2β→O→7, 4β→8)-catechin, exert cholesterol micelle-degrading activity in vitro

Abstract

We identified epicatechin-(4β→6)-epicatechin- (2β→O→7, 4β→8)-catechin (EEC) in the skin of the peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.). EEC (a trimer) showed more potent cholesterol micelle-degrading activity than procyanidin A1 (a dimer) did in vitro. The hypercholesterolemia suppressing effect of a peanut skin polyphenol on rats fed high-cholesterol diet in our preceding experiments might thus have been due primarily to a micelle degrading effect in the intestine.