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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Med.
Sec. Precision Medicine
Volume 10 - 2023 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2023.1322450
This article is part of the Research Topic Changing Trends of Precision Medicine in Diabetes View all 6 articles

Discovering the anti-diabetic potential of Pomegranate peel metabolites by examining molecular interplay with the TXNIP protein

Provisionally accepted
Tahira Aslam Tahira Aslam 1Amina Arif Amina Arif 1Shafia Arshad Shafia Arshad 2*Fatima Muccee Fatima Muccee 3Khalil Ahmad Khalil Ahmad 2Umair khalil Umair khalil 1Suhail Razak Suhail Razak 4Tayyaba Afsar Tayyaba Afsar 4Ali Almajwal Ali Almajwal 4Huma Shafique Huma Shafique 4
  • 1 University of Central Punjab, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
  • 2 Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur, Pakistan
  • 3 University of the Punjab, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
  • 4 King Saud University, Riyadh, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Medicinal plants like Punica granatum (pomegranate) have traditional uses against diabetes, inflammation and other diseases. The study was initiated to get an insight into the interaction tendency of P. granatum derived compounds with diabetes associated human thioredoxininteracting protein (TXNIP). High glucose in diabetes induces production of TXNIP resulting in β-cells apoptosis. Its inhibition might reduce the diabetes incidence. To elucidate the therapeutic potential of P. granatum peel against diabetes through GC-MS based identification of extracted compounds followed by application of computational algorithms. P. granatum peel extracts were screened for antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, antimicrobial and wound healing properties. Phytochemical and GC-MS based analysis were performed to identify the bioactive compounds. Molecular docking analysis was performed by Auto Dock Vina to predict the binding tendency of P. granatum derived compounds with TXNIP. The peel exhibited antioxidant, antiinflammatory and anti-diabetic activities, which were attributed to phytochemicals like phenols, tannins and steroids. GC-MS analysis identified 3,5-octadien-2-one, 1H-pyrrole -2,5-dione, Beta-D-lyxofuranoside, 5-O-(beta-D-lyxofuranosyl)-decyl, diethyl phthalate, 9-octadecenoic acid (Z)-, methyl ester, hexadecanoic acid, methyl ester, n-hexadecanoic acid, tetradecane, 2,6,10-trimethyl, bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, decane, 3,8-dimethyl, 9-octadecenoic acid (Z)-, methyl ester and bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate in P. granatum peel extracts. Docking analysis revealed high binding affinities of bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and 9-octadecenoic acid with TXNIP i. e. -4.5 and -5.0 kcal/mol, respectively, reflecting these compounds as potent antidiabetic agents. This study validates the traditional uses of P. granatum peel and demonstrates how computational approaches can uncover pharmacologically active phytochemicals. The results suggest P. granatum peel is a promising source of novel therapeutics against diabetes, inflammation and oxidation. Further lead optimization of identified ligands is warranted.

    Keywords: P. granatum, Txnip, diabetes, S. viridans, phytochemicals, biological activities Present study

    Received: 16 Oct 2023; Accepted: 18 Dec 2023.

    Copyright: © 2023 Aslam, Arif, Arshad, Muccee, Ahmad, khalil, Razak, Afsar, Almajwal and Shafique. 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: Shafia Arshad, Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur, Pakistan

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