Identification of a Hydroxygallic Acid Derivative, Zingibroside R1 and a Sterol Lipid as Potential Active Ingredients of Cuscuta chinensis Extract That Has Neuroprotective and Antioxidant Effects in Aged Caenorhabditis elegans
Authors
Shimaa Sayed
Molecular Genetics Group, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, Humboldt University of Berlin, 10115 Berlin, Germany
Saleh Alseekh
Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, 14476 Potsdam, Germany
Alisdair Fernie
Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, 14476 Potsdam, Germany
Walter Luyten
Biology Department, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
Christian Schmitz-Linneweber
Molecular Genetics Group, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, Humboldt University of Berlin, 10115 Berlin, Germany
Nadine Saul
Molecular Genetics Group, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, Humboldt University of Berlin, 10115 Berlin, Germany
Keywords:
C. elegans, Cuscuta chinensis, Eucommia ulmoides, healthspan, traditional Chinese medicine, cognitive fitness, ROS
Abstract
We examined the effects of the extracts from two traditional Chinese medicine plants, Cuscuta chinensis and Eucommia ulmoides, on the healthspan of the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans. C. chinensis increased the short-term memory and the mechanosensory response of aged C. elegans. Furthermore, both extracts improved the resistance towards oxidative stress, and decreased the intracellular level of reactive oxygen species. Chemical analyses of the extracts revealed the presence of several bioactive compounds such as chlorogenic acid, cinnamic acid, and quercetin. A fraction from the C. chinensis extract enriched in zingibroside R1 improved the lifespan, the survival after heat stress, and the locomotion in a manner similar to the full C. chinensis extract. Thus, zingibroside R1 could be (partly) responsible for the observed health benefits of C. chinensis. Furthermore, a hydroxygallic acid derivative and the sterol lipid 4-alpha-formyl-stigmasta-7,24(241)-dien-3-beta-ol are abundantly present in the C. chinensis extract and its most bioactive fraction, but hardly in E. ulmoides, making them good candidates to explain the overall healthspan benefits of C. chinensis compared to the specific positive effects on stress resistance by E. ulmoides. Our findings highlight the overall anti-aging effects of C. chinensis in C. elegans and provide first hints about the components responsible for these effects.
Keywords: C. elegans, Cuscuta chinensis, Eucommia ulmoides, healthspan, traditional Chinese medicine, cognitive fitness, ROS
Author Biographies
Shimaa Sayed, Molecular Genetics Group, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Life Sciences, Humboldt University of Berlin, 10115 Berlin, Germany
Botany and Microbiology Department, Faculty of Science, New Valley University, El-Kharga 72511, Egypt
Saleh Alseekh, Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, 14476 Potsdam, Germany
Center for Plant Systems Biology and Biotechnology, 4000 Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Alisdair Fernie, Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, 14476 Potsdam, Germany
Center for Plant Systems Biology and Biotechnology, 4000 Plovdiv, Bulgaria
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