Lampris guttatus (Mandai) with a high content of another imidazole dipeptide, "balenine"

Abstract

Imidazole dipeptides have been elucidated to have a variety of functionalities and are now being put to practical use. Recently, it was discovered that the muscle of a fish called Lampris guttatus (mandai) contains a high concentration of "balenine" a type of imidazole dipeptide. This fish species belongs to the order Lampriformes in terms of classification, and the closely related species is the oarfish. It is caught together with tuna in pelagic longline fisheries, but its trade price is lower than that of tuna and it is underutilized. The extract powder extracted from the meat of L. guttatus contained 30% or more of balenine, and it was possible to obtain high purity balenine of more than 95% by treatment such as ion-exchange resin column and recrystallization. Balenine purified from L. guttatus had an antioxidant capacity equal to or higher than that of carnosine and anserine. When orally administered to mice, it was absorbed from the intestinal tract and detected in blood. The blood levels of balenine were higher than that of carnosine given in the same dose and was maintained for a long time.