Cai Jie, Zhu Wenli, Xue Jingjing, Ma Yanqing, Li Kaimian, Zhang Lanyue, Aluko Oluwaseun Olayemi, Chen Songbi, Luo Xiuqin, An Feifei
Tropical Crops Genetic Resources Institute, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Science/Key Laboratory of Agriculture for Germplasm Resources Conservation and Utilization of Cassava, Haikou 571101, China.
National Key Laboratory for Tropical Crop Breeding, Sanya 572025, China.
Int J Mol Sci. 2025 Apr 27;26(9):4140. doi: 10.3390/ijms26094140.
Cassava is a tropical tuberous root crop, feeding over a billion people globally. However, research on the chemical composition and bioactive effects of cassava leaves remains scarce. Two specific varieties of South China No. 9 (green leaves (G.L.)) and South China No. 20 (purple leaves (P.L.)) were investigated in this study. The components of G.L. and P.L. were analyzed under different extraction methods using ultra-performance liquid chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF/MS). Results showed that cassava leaf extracts are rich in bioactive metabolites such as D-(+)-mannose, trigonelline, rutin, kaempferol-3--rutinoside, and oleamide. To assess the anti-inflammatory efficacy of bioactive compounds, animal models were established. Compared to the histamine group (NA), the group treated with the extracts had reduced epidermal thickness in hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining. Further analysis revealed a drastic reduction in the number of mast cells in toluidine blue (TB) staining and expression levels of inflammatory cytokines (IL-17 and TNF-α) in immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining. The ethanolic extracts from the leaves demonstrated potent anti-inflammatory activities, with the extract from G.L. surpassing that from P.L. Transcriptomic analyses propose that the anti-inflammatory effects of cassava leaves may be related to the modulation of genes involved in mast cell activation, such as , , and , among others. Network pharmacology unveiled that the extract of cassava leaves modulates pathways associated with apoptosis, inflammation, and metabolism. Molecular docking revealed strong binding interactions between 1-stearoylglycerol and oleamide from cassava leaves extracts and the proteins of AKT1, TNF, and BRAF. Overall, cassava leaf extracts seem to be a promising natural anti-inflammatory agent.
木薯是一种热带块根作物，为全球超过10亿人提供食物。然而，关于木薯叶化学成分和生物活性作用的研究仍然匮乏。本研究对华南9号（绿叶（G.L.））和华南20号（紫叶（P.L.））这两个特定品种进行了调查。使用超高效液相色谱飞行时间质谱（UPLC-Q-TOF/MS）在不同提取方法下分析了G.L.和P.L.的成分。结果表明，木薯叶提取物富含生物活性代谢物，如D-(+)-甘露糖、胡芦巴碱、芦丁、山奈酚-3-芸香糖苷和油酰胺。为评估生物活性化合物的抗炎功效，建立了动物模型。与组胺组（NA）相比，提取物处理组在苏木精和伊红（HE）染色中表皮厚度降低。进一步分析显示，甲苯胺蓝（TB）染色中肥大细胞数量急剧减少，免疫组织化学（IHC）染色中炎症细胞因子（IL-17和TNF-α）表达水平降低。叶乙醇提取物表现出强大的抗炎活性，G.L.提取物的抗炎活性超过P.L.提取物。转录组分析表明，木薯叶的抗炎作用可能与参与肥大细胞活化的基因调节有关，如 、 和 等。网络药理学揭示，木薯叶提取物调节与细胞凋亡、炎症和代谢相关的途径。分子对接显示，木薯叶提取物中的1-硬脂酰甘油和油酰胺与AKT1、TNF和BRAF蛋白之间存在强烈的结合相互作用。总体而言，木薯叶提取物似乎是一种有前景的天然抗炎剂。
