curious about ketones in fasting and ketone-containing compounds in anthoxanthins

[Greg Scott]

I've heard about ketones in fasting, and I read that some flavonoids (subclass anthoxanthins) are ketone-containing compounds.

 

But I haven't seen flavonoids mentioned in discussions of fasting (ketogenesis). I had expected to find some "compare and contrast" info.

 

I see that ketones have straight carbon chains (i.e. are open-chain compounds) and a carbonyl group, while flavonoids have rings (i.e. are cyclic compounds) and a carbonyl group.

 

How do the ketone-containing compounds of flavanoids in class anthoxanthins (flavones and flavonols) relate to the "ketone bodies" in ketogenesis triggered during fasting (for at least 2 or 3 days)?

 

I'm hoping for some "compare and contrast" info. I do not expect there to be anthoxanthins in ketogenesis.

 

It seems that acetone is an open-chain ketone, and is produced in ketosis, but has little similarity to the ketone-containing compounds of flavonoids (specifically anthoxanthins), which are cyclic. Maybe the open-chain versus cyclic compound is so different in the minds of informed people that the ketone commonality is not worth discussing.

 

After my feeble Internet searching failed to provide info on chemical similarity between flavonoids' (specifically anthoxanthins) ketone compounds and the "ketone bodies" in fasting, I turned to Wikipedia, which left me somewhat confused:

 

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketone

Not to be confused with ketone bodies.

The word ketone derives its name from Aketon, an old German word for acetone.

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketone_bodies

The three endogenous ketone bodies are acetone, acetoacetic acid, and beta-hydroxybutyric acid.

3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acetone

Acetone is a colorless, volatile, flammable liquid, and is the simplest ketone.

 

So acetone is a ketone body (2), and is the simplest ketone (3), but ketone is "Not to be confused with ketone bodies" (1).

 

Hmmm.

 

Here ends my question.

 

The remainder of this post is just some interesting info from Wikipedia:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flavonoid

Flavonoids include anthoxanthins (flavones and flavonols), which are

ketone-containing compounds. This class was the first to be termed

bioflavonoids.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketosis

• Ketosis is a metabolic state where most of the body's energy supply comes from ketone bodies in the blood, in contrast to a state of glycolysis where blood glucose provides most of the energy.
• Ketone bodies are formed by ketogenesis when liver glycogen stores are depleted (or from metabolising medium-chain triglycerides). The main ketone bodies used for energy are acetoacetate and β-hydroxybutyrate, and the levels of ketone bodies are regulated mainly by insulin and glucagon.
• Most cells in the body can use both glucose and ketone bodies for fuel, and during ketosis, free fatty acids and glucose synthesis (gluconeogenesis) fuel the remainder.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acetone

Biosynthesis

Small amounts of acetone are produced in the body by the decarboxylation of ketone bodies. Certain dietary patterns, including prolonged fasting and high-fat low-carbohydrate dieting, can produce ketosis, in which acetone is formed in body tissue. Certain health conditions, such as alcoholism and diabetes, can produce ketoacidosis, uncontrollable ketosis that leads to a sharp, and potentially fatal, increase in the acidity of the blood. Since it is a byproduct of fermentation, acetone is a byproduct of the distillery industry.