Search for unti-diabetic medicine with insulin-like upregulation of glucose consumption from functional foods

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18K06739
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 47050:Environmental and natural pharmaceutical resources-related
• Research Institution: Shujitsu University (2020-2021); Kindai University (2018-2019)
• Principal Investigator: Ninomiya Kiyofumi 就実大学, 薬学部, 教授 (10434862)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 森川 敏生 近畿大学, 薬学総合研究所, 教授 (10340449)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: インスリン / インスリン抵抗性 / 糖尿病 / 糖消費 / メース / サンショウ

Outline of Final Research Achievements

We searched for alternative substances to insulin, which is currently administered by subcutaneous injection, from a wide range of herbal medicines and edible plants, and found that extracts from mace and pericarps of Zanthoxylum piperitum had insulin-like activity to promote glucose consumption. The results of the search for active contributing components in these extracts revealed significant activity in neolignans from mace and acid amide derivatives from Z. piperitum. All were medium- to low-molecular weight compounds.　The mechanism of action of these compounds suggests that some of them exert their actions through a pathway that is not mediated by the insulin receptor, and additive effects were observed when they were used in combination with insulin, which is an interesting finding from an scientific perspective, such as their application to patients with insulin resistance.

Free Research Field

生薬学，食品薬学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究課題では，天然よりインスリンの代替となり得る糖消費亢進作用物質を複数見出した．これらの化合物の一部は，インスリン受容体を介さない経路で作用している事が示唆されている．つまり，生体内で血糖値の低下に関与するホルモンであるインスリンとは異なる作用点を利用した，糖消費更新経路が存在するということを示唆する結果が得られている．本研究結果は，ケミカルバイオロジー的視点からも，化合物により制御可能な新たな創薬ターゲットを示唆する成果であり，生体の未知の機能性の解明にも寄与する結果と考えられる．