A plant metabolite and an aldose reductase 2 inhibitor (IC50 = 17 µM); inhibits glucose-induced sorbitol accumulation in lenses isolated from a transgenic mouse model overexpressing AKR1B1; reduces methylglyoxal-induced increases in COX-2, IL-6, IL-8, CCL2, and RAGE levels in ARPE-19 retinal epithelial cells