Tatefuji Tomoki, Yanagihara Miyako, Fukushima Shinobu, Hashimoto Ken
Institute for Bee Products & Health Science, Yamada Bee Company Inc., 194 Ichiba, Kagamino-cho, Tomada-gun, Okayama 708-0393, Japan.
Food Chem Toxicol. 2014 May;67:230-5. doi: 10.1016/j.fct.2014.02.030. Epub 2014 Mar 3.
Melinjo (Gnetum gnemon L.) is widely cultivated in Southeast Asia. Its fruit and seeds are common ingredients in Indonesian foods. The seeds are very rich in resveratrol dimers such as gnetin C and its glucosides, gnemonoside A and gnemonoside D, and also contain trans-resveratrol and its glucoside, trans-piceid. The safety of melinjo seeds is assured, since people in Southeast Asia have consumed them for a long time; however, their safety has not been scientifically verified. In this study, the safety of melinjo seed extract (MSE) powder was assessed in an acute oral toxicity study, a 4-week repeated dose toxicity study, and in a micronucleus test in rats. In the acute and subchronic toxicity studies, the group administered the powder did not show any toxicologically significant MSE-related changes, compared with the control group. The no observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) was determined as 1000 mg/kg/day. A genotoxicity test (rat bone marrow micronucleus test) was negative for MSE powder at levels up to 4000 mg/kg/day. These results might provide supportive evidence of safety of melinjo seeds, which has been used as food ingredients for a long time.
九层皮（Gnetum gnemon L.）在东南亚广泛种植。其果实和种子是印度尼西亚食品中的常见成分。种子富含白藜芦醇二聚体，如gnetin C及其糖苷、gnemonoside A和gnemonoside D，还含有反式白藜芦醇及其糖苷反式白藜芦醇苷。由于东南亚人长期食用九层皮种子，其安全性是有保障的；然而，其安全性尚未经过科学验证。在本研究中，通过急性经口毒性试验、为期4周的重复剂量毒性试验以及大鼠微核试验，对九层皮种子提取物（MSE）粉末的安全性进行了评估。在急性和亚慢性毒性试验中，与对照组相比，给予该粉末的组未出现任何与MSE相关的具有毒理学意义的变化。未观察到有害作用水平（NOAEL）确定为1000毫克/千克/天。在高达4000毫克/千克/天的剂量水平下，MSE粉末的遗传毒性试验（大鼠骨髓微核试验）结果为阴性。这些结果可能为长期用作食品成分的九层皮种子的安全性提供支持性证据。
