To provide a method for effectively obtaining polyphenols as a physiologically active substance found only in minute amounts in a plant body, that is, a method for obtaining a plant of increased polyphenol content by raising the plant under specific conditions, and to obtain the polyphenols as the physiologically active substance having hepatopathy prophylactic and/or mitigating effect so as to use the substance in the pharmaceutical or functional food field.
The objective method for increasing the yield of polyphenols in plant body involves raising a polyphenol-generating plant under the conditions of loading a stress such as light stress or water stress on the plant. The other objective use of the polyphenols as a physiologically active substance is provided based on the finding that the polyphenol component obtained from the plant body of safflower has the effect of preventing and/or mitigating onset of hepatopathy, particularly hepatopathy due to toxic substance.
SHIRAISHI TAKUO
IGARASHI YOSHIHARU
OYA HIROAKI
