“…It is well known that oral mucosa can promote bioavailability of a wide range of both polar and hydrophobic compounds that rapidly reach the blood circulation, by-passing the GI tract, and, recently, some authors have tried to clarify the molecular mechanisms at the base of this process (Oulianova, Cheng, Huebert, & Chen, 2007). Moreover, since a large part of nutrients and non-nutrients are gastro-sensitive and/or poorly absorbed by the intestinal tract, the salivary extraction and absorption via oral mucosal epithelium would allow bioactive compounds to target specific tissues and organs directly, without undergoing the potential degradation in the GI tract and/or excretion in the feces (Oulianova et al, 2007). Interestingly, it has been reported that procyanidins and condensed tannins are able to inhibit digestive enzymes, decreasing the bioaccessibility of food nutrients, thus, acting as antinutritional metabolites (Fraziera et al, 2010).…”