Mechanisms of Actions of Physiological, Pharmacological, and Toxicological Dietary Bioactive Inorganic Boron

Based on a significant amount of evidence from in vitro, animal, and human experiments, the basic aspect of the mechanism of action of nutritional, pharmacological, and toxicologic inorganic boron is the formation of boron esters with biomolecules that have vicinal cis-diols. The formation of boron esters results in the modulation of the bioactivity of biomolecules, especially those with the ribose moiety, that regulate gene expression, inflammation, oxidation/reduction, membrane function, hormone activity, and signaling. The nutritional and pharmacological modulation has been found to have benefits under conditions with impaired bone formation and maintenance, cognitive function, psychomotor skills, cancer risk, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, immune function, inflammatory symptoms in osteoarthritis and dental disease, embryo development, and aging. Because there is evidence that impairments in these functions occur in animals and humans fed boron-deprived diets, the identification of a mechanism of action supports the concept that boron is a nutrient needed for optimal health and well-being.