ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Endocrinol.
Sec. Diabetes: Molecular Mechanisms
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fendo.2025.1594782
This article is part of the Research TopicHerbal Medicine for the Treatment of Chronic Metabolic Diseases, Volume IIView all 25 articles
Network pharmacological investigation and experimental verification of the peel of Zea mays L. regulating metabolic reprogramming in the treatment of diabetic nephropathy
Provisionally accepted
- Nantong University, Nantong, China
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Background: Zea mays L. is one of the most significant genes in the Gramineae family, and the peel of Zea mays L. (YMP), an unproven folk remedy for diabetes, has not been well studied. Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is one of the most well-known and dangerous microvascular effects of diabetes mellitus. The effects and mechanisms of YMP on metabolic reprogramming are largely unknown.The components of YMP were systematically identified using UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS. A network pharmacology study between DN and significant components was then carried out. The pharmacological trials of YMP were evaluated in mice with diabetes. In vitro measurements were made of the biochemical activity, antiinflammatory, and antioxidant properties. Moreover, UHPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap MS was used to do investigations on the metabolomics of serum and urine. Ultimately, transcriptomics analysis was utilized to clarify the complex processes by which the transcription factor influences DN.Results: 43 components were systematically identified from YMP. It was found by network pharmacology analysis that signal transduction, namely metabolic disruption, involved pathways with a high degree of engagement. Experimental verification showed that YMP administration increased glomerular hypertrophy, collagenous tissue proliferation, urine microalbumin/creatinine ratio, inflammatory response remission, and oxidative stress promotion in vivo. Treatment with YMP may affect the pathways that are involved in the metabolism of amino acids and energy, as well as reverse metabolite abnormalities. YMP has the ability to restore the levels of metabolites like
Keywords: Gluconolactone, D-Ribulose 5-phosphate, Xylulose 5-phosphate, L-Alanine, L-Aspartic acid, Glutamic acid, Citrulline, L-Arginine, L-Leucine, L-Valine, L-Isoleucine, Diabetic nephropathy, the peel of Zea mays L., Network Pharmacology, Metabolic reprogramming AAs: aromatic amino acids, AMPK: AMP-activated protein kinase, BCAAs: branchedchain amino acids, BP: biological processes, CAMs: cell adhesion molecules
Received: 17 Mar 2025; Accepted: 14 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Wang, He, Yang, He, Chen, Ling and CHENG. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Andong Wang, Nantong University, Nantong, China
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