Department of General Biochemistry, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Lodz, Pomorska 141/143, 90-236 Lodz, Poland.
Molecules. 2017 Nov 10;22(11):1942. doi: 10.3390/molecules22111942.
Milk thistle () is a medicinal plant that has been used for thousands of years as a remedy for a variety of ailments. The main component of fruit extract (silymarin) is a flavonolignan called silybin, which is not only the major silymarin element but is also the most active ingredient of this extract, which has been confirmed in various studies. This compound belongs to the flavonoid group known as flavonolignans. Silybin's structure consists in two main units. The first is based on a taxifolin, the second a phenyllpropanoid unit, which in this case is conyferil alcohol. These two units are linked together into one structure by an oxeran ring. Since the 1970s, silybin has been regarded in official medicine as a substance with hepatoprotective properties. There is a large body of research that demonstrates silybin's many other healthy properties, but there are still a lack of papers focused on its molecular structure, chemistry, metabolism, and novel form of administration. Therefore, the aim of this paper is a literature review presenting and systematizing our knowledge of the silybin molecule, with particular emphasis on its structure, chemistry, bioavailability, and metabolism.
水飞蓟（Milk thistle）是一种药用植物，几千年来一直被用作治疗各种疾病的药物。 其果实提取物（水飞蓟素）的主要成分是一种叫做水飞蓟宾的类黄酮木脂素，它不仅是水飞蓟素的主要成分，也是该提取物的最有效成分，这已在各种研究中得到证实。 这种化合物属于被称为类黄酮木脂素的黄酮类。 水飞蓟宾的结构由两个主要单元组成。 第一个单元基于栎精，第二个单元是苯丙素单元，在这种情况下是松柏醇。 这两个单元通过氧杂环戊烷环连接成一个结构。 自 20 世纪 70 年代以来，水飞蓟宾已被官方药物视为具有保肝特性的物质。 有大量研究表明水飞蓟宾具有许多其他健康特性，但仍缺乏专注于其分子结构、化学、代谢和新给药形式的论文。 因此，本文的目的是对水飞蓟宾分子进行文献综述，展示和系统化我们的知识，特别强调其结构、化学、生物利用度和代谢。
