What is luteolin used for?

Luteolin is most commonly used in dietary supplements for anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, neuroprotective, and anti-allergy positioning. It is also studied for cardiovascular protection and uric-acid management.

What foods naturally contain luteolin?

Celery, parsley, chrysanthemum flowers, perilla, thyme, basil, broccoli, carrots, oregano, and green peppers all contain measurable luteolin, mostly as the 7-O-glucoside form. Typical dietary intake from food alone is below 5 mg/day.

How much luteolin is safe to take?

Most published human studies use 100–300 mg/day of standardized luteolin (≥95% HPLC). Long-term high-dose safety data is limited, so always validate dosing against the regulatory framework of your target market.

Is luteolin water-soluble?

Free luteolin aglycone has very low water solubility. For beverage or clear-formulation use, choose luteolin-7-O-glucoside, a phospholipid complex, or a cyclodextrin-inclusion form.

How does luteolin differ from quercetin?

Both are flavonoids of similar MW (286 vs 302 g/mol). Quercetin has an extra hydroxyl at position 3, which slightly changes its antioxidant profile and is more studied for vascular and antihistamine effects. Luteolin has stronger affinity for certain inflammatory targets like STAT3 and mast-cell stabilization.

Luteolin (CAS 491-70-3): Sources, Benefits, Mechanism, Dosage

TL;DR

Luteolin is a naturally occurring flavone with one of the broadest mechanism-of-action portfolios in the flavonoid family. The bulk of human and preclinical work supports anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and neuroprotective claims; emerging work targets cardiovascular and uric-acid pathways. For formulators, the practical decisions are: (a) which source plant (we extract primarily from chrysanthemum and perilla), (b) which purity grade (95%, 98%, or 99.5% HPLC), and (c) whether to use the free aglycone or the water-soluble glucoside form. See our Luteolin product page for spec, COA, and bulk pricing.

Chemistry

Systematic name: 3',4',5,7-tetrahydroxyflavone
CAS: 491-70-3
Molecular formula: C₁₅H₁₀O₆
Molecular weight: 286.24 g/mol
Appearance: Yellow crystalline powder
Solubility: Soluble in DMSO and ethanol; very low water solubility

Luteolin is a flavone (4H-chromen-4-one backbone) bearing four hydroxyl groups. Its planar structure and hydroxyl pattern give it strong free-radical scavenging capability and the ability to chelate transition metal ions — properties that underlie both its antioxidant activity and its inhibition of metal-dependent enzymes like xanthine oxidase.

Natural sources

Luteolin is widespread in the plant kingdom, but content varies dramatically:

Plant	Latin	Part used	Typical content
Chrysanthemum	Chrysanthemum morifolium	Flower	0.3–1.2%
Perilla	Perilla frutescens	Leaf	0.1–0.5%
Celery	Apium graveolens	Leaf	trace
Parsley	Petroselinum crispum	Leaf	0.06%
Honeysuckle	Lonicera japonica	Flower	0.1–0.3%
Japanese pagoda tree	Sophora japonica	Flower bud	<0.1%

Chrysanthemum is the practical commercial choice — high content, stable supply chain, and mature standardized extraction.

Health benefits, by evidence tier

Strong preclinical + supportive human data

Anti-inflammatory — inhibits NF-κB, MAPK (JNK/p38), STAT3, reducing TNF-α, IL-6, and NO in activated macrophages ¹
Antioxidant — scavenges DPPH, ABTS, hydroxyl radicals; activates Nrf2/ARE/HO-1 pathway ¹
Anti-allergic — suppresses mast cell degranulation and histamine release

Robust preclinical, limited human studies

Neuroprotective — reduces β-amyloid aggregation and tau hyperphosphorylation in dementia models ²

Emerging

Uric-acid lowering via xanthine oxidase inhibition
Skin — soothes irritation, supports skin wellness formulations

Typical dosage

Published clinical work uses 100–300 mg/day of standardized luteolin (≥95% HPLC). Always validate against the regulatory framework and intended claims for your target market.

To improve oral bioavailability, formulators commonly use:

Phospholipid complexes (lecithin–luteolin) — improves absorption ~3×
Co-administration with piperine — inhibits Phase II metabolism
Glucoside forms — luteolin-7-O-glucoside is water-soluble and absorbed differently than the aglycone

Regulatory & safety

Generally regarded as safe at typical dietary supplement dosages
No US FDA GRAS letter as of 2026; EFSA has not issued a novel food authorization
Always include a not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease disclaimer in supplement marketing

Buying bulk luteolin

When sourcing bulk luteolin, the key qualification questions are:

Purity by HPLC — request a recent COA with HPLC chromatogram, not just a UV summary
Source plant — chrysanthemum vs perilla vs Japanese pagoda; affects flavonoid by-product profile
Solvent residues — ICH Q3C compliance, especially for ethanol/methanol
Heavy metals & pesticides — ICP-MS verification, USP <232>/<233> for pharma applications
Microbial limits — USP <61> and <62> for supplement-grade
Country of origin — for tariff/SOO documentation and audit trails
Allergen statement — Sophora japonica is a legume

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References

Aziz N, Kim MY, Cho JY (2018). Anti-inflammatory effects of luteolin: A review. J Ethnopharmacol. doi:10.1016/j.jep.2018.07.005 ↩ ↩²
Nabavi SF et al. (2015). Luteolin as an anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective agent. Brain Res Bull. doi:10.1016/j.brainresbull.2015.01.001 ↩