Zhang Lamei, Cao Kaixun, Yang Xizhe, Zhou Shengwen, Mwangi James, Wang Chengye, Chen Yifan, Zhang Chengchen, Wang Ziyi, Zhao Min, Shi Lei, Lu Qiumin
Yunnan Key Laboratory of Breeding and Utilization of Resource Insects, Key Laboratory of Breeding and Utilization of Resource Insects of National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Institute of Highland Forest Science, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Kunming, China.
College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China.
Front Pharmacol. 2025 Aug 20;16:1595534. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2025.1595534. eCollection 2025.
Fairmaire is a medicinal insect that has been used for a long time by minority ethnic groups in Yunnan, China, due to its immunomodulatory function. However, its potential applications in cosmetics have not been reported.
experiments were used to verify whether the extracts of Fairmaire (EBR) have the effect of inhibiting TYR activity and eliminating melanin deposition. Subsequently, experiments were conducted to verify further the potential application of the EBR in whitening. To explore the whitening components of the EBR, we employed UHPLC-Q-TOF MS to identify the compounds present in the EBR and utilized network pharmacology to compare them with the genes involved in whitening in the database, thereby obtaining the intersection of compound targets and whitening targets. Then, protein-protein interaction network analysis, gene ontology enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway enrichment analysis were carried out to explore the main components of the whitening effect of the EBR. Further, molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation were used to verify the correlation between the main components of the EBR and the essential target molecules.
and studies have found that the EBR exhibits anti-oxidation, TYR-inhibiting activity, and the elimination of melanin deposition. Subsequently, 1538 metabolites were identified by UHPLC-Q-TOF MS analysis, indicating that EBR is a rich source of bioactive compounds. Among them, 82 kinds of phenols and flavonoids may be derived from external enrichment or self-synthesis. Network pharmacology revealed 41 genes related to pigmentation and TYR inhibition. Molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation confirmed that myricetin, luteolin, apigenin and quercetin have a high binding affinity with TYR, which may regulate melanin production by inhibiting TYR activity.
In this study, we identified the primary whitening active ingredients of and utilized network pharmacology and molecular dynamics simulation to investigate the mechanism underlying the whitening effect of EBR. This work reveals that insect extraction may have broad application prospects in the preparation of cosmetics. To our knowledge, this is the first report identifying the flavonoids quercetin, luteolin, myricetin, and apigenin as whitening-active components in insects.
蜚蠊是一种药用昆虫，由于其免疫调节功能，在中国云南的少数民族中已被长期使用。然而，其在化妆品中的潜在应用尚未见报道。
通过实验验证蜚蠊提取物（EBR）是否具有抑制酪氨酸酶（TYR）活性和消除黑色素沉着的作用。随后，进行进一步实验以验证EBR在美白方面的潜在应用。为探究EBR的美白成分，我们采用超高效液相色谱-四极杆飞行时间质谱（UHPLC-Q-TOF MS）鉴定EBR中存在的化合物，并利用网络药理学将其与数据库中参与美白的基因进行比较，从而获得化合物靶点与美白靶点的交集。然后，进行蛋白质-蛋白质相互作用网络分析、基因本体富集分析和京都基因与基因组百科全书（KEGG）通路富集分析，以探究EBR美白效果的主要成分。此外，利用分子对接和分子动力学模拟来验证EBR主要成分与关键靶分子之间的相关性。
多项研究发现EBR具有抗氧化、抑制TYR活性以及消除黑色素沉着的作用。随后，通过UHPLC-Q-TOF MS分析鉴定出1538种代谢产物表明EBR是生物活性化合物的丰富来源。其中，82种酚类和黄酮类化合物可能来源于外部富集或自身合成。网络药理学揭示了41个与色素沉着和抑制TYR相关的基因。分子对接和分子动力学模拟证实杨梅素、木犀草素、芹菜素和槲皮素与TYR具有高结合亲和力，这可能通过抑制TYR活性来调节黑色素生成。
在本研究中，我们鉴定了蜚蠊的主要美白活性成分，并利用网络药理学和分子动力学模拟研究了EBR美白效果的潜在机制。这项工作表明昆虫提取物在化妆品制备中可能具有广阔的应用前景。据我们所知，这是首次报道将黄酮类化合物槲皮素、木犀草素、杨梅素和芹菜素鉴定为昆虫中的美白活性成分。
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