Piceatannol is one of the major dietary stillbenes, a class of naturally occurring organic compounds with purported health benefits that includes pterostilbene and resveratrol[1]. Piceatannol is sometimes referred to as astringin, although this technically refers to the glycoside of piceatannol (piceatannol-3'-O-β-d-glucopyranoside).[2] While it shares many properties with resveratrol due to its structural similarity,[3] small differences in chemical structure may alter piceatannol function in such a way that may have unique properties, including increased potency or health benefits.
Piceatannol is structurally related to resveratrol except for one small modification, and is found in plants alongside resveratrol and other related stilbenes. It is investigated for its health properties due to the research on resveratrol, which has caused a general increase in research on stillbenes.
Common dietary foods that contain piceatannol include:
- Vaccinium berries including corymbosum (Highbush Blueberry; 186-422ng/g dry weight) and stamineum (Deerberry; 138-195ng/g dry weight)[1] but at quantities lesser than resveratrol[1]
- Blackberries[1]
- Generally absent or at minute quantities in grapes (Vitus genera), but can be increased (by 50-100%[3]) with postharvest irradiation similar to resveratrol[4] and has been detected in Vitis vinifera cv. Cabernet Sauvignon at up to 52ng/g fresh weight;[5] other red wines have had variable concentrations of piceatannol in the range of 0.54-5.22mg/L[6] or have failed to find appreciable piceatannol[7][8]
- Almonds, identified in blanched water (collectively with oxyresveratrol) at 0.19-2.55μg/100g almond weight[9]
- Passion fruit seeds at 2.2mg/g (raw seed weight) and 4.8mg/g (freeze dried weight)[10][11] but not detected in the rind nor pulp of the fruits[10]
- Rhubarb (Rheum undulatum)[12] which also contains a diglycoside of piceatannol[13]
- Peanuts at up to 18.69 ± 2.52 μg/g when the growth of peanuts is stressed by Botryodiplodia theobromae (a fungal peanut pathogen), or 6.93+/-2.03µg/g when stressed with other fungi such as Reishi[14]
- Black tea (fermented camellia sinensis) at 14-53µg/g (trans-resveratrol at 51-56µg/g)[3][15] and due to green tea (unfermented camellia sinensis) having 14-53µg/g[3][15] it is unlikely fermentation influences the stilbene content
- Ceylan tea at 49+/-4µg/g[3][15]
- Chamomile at 11+/-0.2µg/g[3][15]
Plant sources of piceatannol appear to always contain resveratrol. (Conversely, most sources of resveratrol also contain piceatannol, although to a lesser extent). Piceatannol content can vary more than resveratrol content when assessing one batch of foods relative to the next, suggesting that piceatannol may be a more volatile food component.
With dietary supplements or plants not common in the diet comprising:
- Cissus quadrangularis[16]
- Japanese Knotweed at 0.025-0.067mg/g (Astringin at 0.98-1.22mg/g),[17] although one variant (sachalinensis) had near undetectable levels[17] and other variants possessed only astringin[18]
- Maclura pomifera
- Senna skinneri[20]
Supplements that have resveratrol also tend to also contain traces of piceatannol. There are not currently any known supplements or plants that are exceptionally good sources of piceatannol however, either alone or in combination with other stilbenes such as resveratrol.
The berries which contain piceatannol tend to contain undetectable quantities of pterostilbene and vice versa, meaning some variants (rabbiteye blueberry) have pterostilbene without picetannaol and others (highbush blueberry) being the opposite;[1] some (deerberry) have different batches containing one or the other but not both.[1] This relationship appears to exist between those two yet not resveratrol (present in all berries).
Piceatannol has been found to exist as a homodimer or as heterodimers with resveratrol in wine.[2]

