Enhancing the Antioxidant Characteristics of Phenolic Acids by Their Conversion into Cholinium Salts

Because of the close relation between oxidative stress and a plethora of inflammatory diseases, antioxidants have received an increased attention for incorporation into dermatological products. Their use and absorption are, however, limited by their low solubility in water-rich formulations. Herein, a set of novel cholinium-based salts, namely dicholinium ellagate and cholinium caffeate, syringate, vanillate, gallate, and salicylate, were synthesized and characterized. Their melting and decomposition temperatures, water solubility, and toxicological, antioxidant, cytotoxicity and pro-/anti-inflammatory activities were addressed. These new salts, exclusively composed of ions derived from natural sources, display a high thermal stability–up to 150 °C. The synthesized compounds are significantly more soluble in water (on average, 3 orders of magnitude higher) than the corresponding phenolic acids. Furthermore, they present not only similar but even higher antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities, as well as comparable cytotoxicity and lower ecotoxicity profiles than their acidic precursors. Among all the investigated salts, dicholinium ellagate is the most promising synthesized salt when considering the respective antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. Because all the synthesized salts are based on the cholinium cation, they can further be envisaged as essential nutrients to be used in oral drugs.