1. Introduction
Pterostilbene (trans-3,5-dimethoxy-4-hydroxystilbene) is a naturally derived compound found primarily in blueberries and Pterocarpus marsupium (PM) heartwood [1, 2]. The amount of daily pterostilbene consumption varies according to dietary fruit intake, and it has been estimated that pterostilbene content per blueberry varies from 99 ng to 520 ng/gram depending on the type of berry ingested [3, 4]. Substantial evidence suggests that pterostilbene may have numerous preventive and therapeutic properties in a vast range of human diseases that include neurological, cardiovascular, metabolic, and hematologic disorders. Further benefits of pterostilbene have been reported in preclinical trials, in which pterostilbene was shown to be a potent anticancer agent in several malignancies [5]. Pterostilbene is structurally similar to resveratrol, a compound found in red wine that has comparable antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticarcinogenic properties; however, pterostilbene exhibits increased bioavailability due to the presence of two methoxy groups which cause it to exhibit increased lipophilic and oral absorption (Figure 1) [6–10]. In animal studies, pterostilbene was shown to have 80% bioavailability compared to 20% for resveratrol making it potentially advantageous as a therapeutic agent [6].