Wechakorn Kanokorn, Payaka Apirak, Masoongnoen Jintana, Wattanalaorsomboon Sukrit, Sansenya Sompong
Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, Rajamangala University of Technology Thanyaburi, Pathum Thani, Thailand.
School of Science, Walailak University, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand.
J Sci Food Agric. 2025 May;105(7):3701-3711. doi: 10.1002/jsfa.14121. Epub 2025 Jan 11.
Edible insects are used for consumption and traditional medicine due to their rich bioactive compounds. This study examined the bioactive compounds and inhibitory effects of crude extracts from Bombyx mori and Omphisa fuscidentalis on α-glucosidase, α-amylase, acetylcholinesterase (AChE), and tyrosinase. Fatty acids, including n-hexadecanoic acid and oleic acid, were identified in the extracts and evaluated for their inhibitory potential against the enzymes in vitro and in silico.
The total phenolic content of the edible insect extracts correlated with enzyme inhibitory activity. The quercetin and kaempferol content of B. mori ethyl acetate (EtOAc) extract was also closely related to α-amylase inhibitory activity. The EtOAc and hexane extracts of B. mori showed similar inhibition potential to acarbose and tacrine against α-amylase and AChE, respectively. The hexane extract of O. fuscidentalis exhibited comparable tyrosinase inhibitory activity to kojic acid. n-Hexadecanoic acid and oleic acid were the predominant bioactive compounds in all of the extracts. A kinetic study revealed that n-hexadecanoic acid acted as a mixed-type inhibitor against α-amylase, similar to acarbose, whereas oleic acid showed non-competitive inhibition against AChE, unlike tacrine. Docking studies suggested that these fatty acids bind to the active sites of α-amylase and AChE.
The findings suggest that n-hexadecanoic acid and oleic acid from edible insects could be potential candidates for treating diabetes mellitus and Alzheimer's disease. An animal model might be used for further examination to confirm these findings. © 2025 Society of Chemical Industry.
食用昆虫因其丰富的生物活性化合物而被用于食用和传统医学。本研究检测了家蚕和暗褐断眼天蛾粗提物对α-葡萄糖苷酶、α-淀粉酶、乙酰胆碱酯酶（AChE）和酪氨酸酶的生物活性化合物及抑制作用。在提取物中鉴定出包括正十六烷酸和油酸在内的脂肪酸，并对其体外和计算机模拟的酶抑制潜力进行了评估。
食用昆虫提取物的总酚含量与酶抑制活性相关。家蚕乙酸乙酯（EtOAc）提取物中的槲皮素和山奈酚含量也与α-淀粉酶抑制活性密切相关。家蚕的EtOAc和己烷提取物分别对α-淀粉酶和AChE表现出与阿卡波糖和他克林相似的抑制潜力。暗褐断眼天蛾的己烷提取物表现出与曲酸相当的酪氨酸酶抑制活性。正十六烷酸和油酸是所有提取物中的主要生物活性化合物。动力学研究表明，正十六烷酸对α-淀粉酶的作用类似于阿卡波糖，为混合型抑制剂，而油酸对AChE的抑制作用与他克林不同，表现为非竞争性抑制。对接研究表明，这些脂肪酸与α-淀粉酶和AChE的活性位点结合。
研究结果表明，食用昆虫中的正十六烷酸和油酸可能是治疗糖尿病和阿尔茨海默病的潜在候选物。可使用动物模型进行进一步研究以证实这些发现。©2025化学工业协会。
