Pine Bark Extract Proanthocyanidins and Pine Bark Uses.

About Anthocyanins and Proanthocyanins:Flavonoid groups.

Pine Bark Extract INCI Name Pinetree extract CAS 000000-14-0 French Marine Pine Bark Extract French Maritime Pine Bark Extract Leucoanthocyanidins OPC Oligomeric Proanthocyanidins PCO Pinus maritima Pinus pinaster Procyandiol Oligomers Procyanodolic Oligomers Pycnogenol Pygenol Pine Bark Extract.Proanthocyanidins Pinus Strobus Bark extract.Proanthocyanidin B2 photo picture image Anthocyanins and their precursors Proanthocyanins (also called condensed tannins) are chemically related to quercetin, and they are another class of flavonoids that are excellent antioxidants with similar benefits to other bioflavonoids. Pycnogenol, which comes from the bark of the French Maritime Pine (pinus maritima), is a particularly promoted and well-known source of proanthocyanidins. While their cost is several times that of citrus bioflavonoids, tablet sizes are only a fraction of those containing other types of flavonoids, so they are easier to take for individuals with swallowing difficulties, or children.

Anthocyanidins are found in tea, beets, cherries, plums, red grapes, hawthorn, and some berries, (cyanidin, delphinidin, pelargonidin, peonidin, petunidin, malvidin).

Proanthocyanidins are found in tea, bilberry, apple, pear, grape seed, pine bark, beer, red wine, cranberry, red beans, (procyanidin, prodelphinidin, propelargonidin).

Proanthocyanidin is a name for a class of bioflavaniods. In 1936, this bioflavinoid was classified and referred to as Vitamin P, although it didn't gain official vitamin category status. The common link between the bioflavaniods, of which there are about 20,000 different ones, is that they contain a benzene-pyran-phenolic acid molecular nucleus (referred to as flavin) as part of their much larger molecular structure. Proanthocyanidins have been sold as nutritional therapeutic supplements in Europe for almost a quarter of a century. Their introduction to the United States has been relatively recent.
Pine Bark Extract INCI Name Pinetree extract CAS 000000-14-0 French Marine Pine Bark Extract French Maritime Pine Bark Extract Leucoanthocyanidins OPC Oligomeric Proanthocyanidins PCO Pinus maritima Pinus pinaster Procyandiol Oligomers Procyanodolic Oligomers Pycnogenol Pygenol Pine Bark Extract.Proanthocyanidins Pinus Strobus Bark extract.Proanthocyanidin B2 photo picture image

Flavonoid groups:

Flavonoids are a diverse group of polyphenolic compounds existing naturally in plants. They are divided into twelve main sub-groups by their structural class. Main groups of flavonoids are flavonols, flavanones, flavones, anthocyanidins and catechins.

Simple flavonoids are able to join together to form other flavonoids. For example, the very simple group of monomeric flavonoids called catechins are able to join together to make bigger molecules.

There are different types of catechins and they bond together in various ways to form different compounds with very different characteristics. Two catechins joined together are called a dimer and three catechins bonded together a trimer and so on up to oligomers and polymers.

These new compounds are called proanthocyanidins, or condensed tannins. Catechins are the building blocks for proanthocyanidins and the number of the latter is almost endless.