Application Notes:
Royal Jelly acid (10-HDA) is one of the major fatty acids found in royal jelly, a substance secreted by young worker bees
and fed to larvae. 10-HDA is being investigated for its pharmacological activities in treating several diseases, improving
fertility, and preventing the spread of tumors. Hydroxy, saturated, and phosphoric acid esters of 10-HDA have also been
found in Royal Jelly and these may also play a role in the pharmacological activities that have been cited.1 10-HDA promotes
neurogenesis of neural stem/progenator cells, cells capable of differentiating into neurons, astrocytes, or oligodendrocytes,
and could provide an effective method to treat and prevent neurological disorders.2 10-HDA also promotes the production of
collagen and collagen promoting growth factors, potentially making it useful for therapeutic and cosmetic applications.3 10-
HDA has been found to inhibit vascular endothelial growth factor which is a key regulator of normal and pathological
angiogenesis and this could be used as a therapeutic treatment for retinopathies, rheumatoid arthritis, and tumor growth.4
Antibiotic actions have long been associated with 10-HDA and recently it has been confirmed to have good antibacterial
properties.5
References:
1. N. Noda et al. “Isolation and characterization of some hydroxy fatty and phosphoric acid esters of 10-hydroxy-2-decenoic acid from the royal jelly of
honeybees (Apis mellifera)” Lipids, Vol. 40(8) pp. 833-838, 2005
2. N. Hattori et al. “Royal jelly and its unique fatty acid, 10-hydroxy-trans-2-decenoic acid, promote neurogenesis by neural stem/progenitor cells in vitro”
Biomedical Research, Vol. 28(5) pp. 261-266, 2007
3. S. Koya-Miyata et al. “Identification of a Collagen Prodcution-Promoting Factor from an Extract of Royal Jelly and Its possible Mechanism” Biosci
Biothechnol Biochem, Vol. 68, 767-773, 2004
4. H. Izuta et al. “10-Hydroxy-2-decenoic Acid, a Major Fatty Acid from Royal Jelly, Inhibits VEGF-induced Angiogenesis in Human Umbilical Vein
Endothelial Cells” eCAM, Vol. 6(4) pp. 489-494, 2009
5. K. Yatsunami and T. Echigo “Antibacterial Action of Royal Jelly” Bull. Fac. Agr., no. 25 pp. 13-22, 1985