Catechin isolated from faba beans (Vicia faba L.): insights from oxidative stress and hypoglycemic effect in yeast cells through confocal microscopy, flow cytometry, and in silico strategy

Abstract

The present aim of this investigation was to evaluate the effect of catechin from faba beans on oxidative stress and glucose uptake in yeast cells. Flow cytometry approach indicated that 2-NBDG (1.98 ± 0.37) seed extract had a lower relative fluorescence signal than methanol (5.98 ± 0.67) and acetone seed extract (4.43 ± 0.55). In comparison to the control and seed extract, H₂O₂ exposure increased the apoptosis rate of yeast cells from 8.20% to 64.80%. Yeast cells incubated with H₂O₂ produced significantly more ROS intensity (162 ± 4.32, p < 0.05) than control cells (118 ± 2.52, p < 0.05) and less than seed extract-treated cells. Molecular dynamics simulation studies were performed for cat:α-amylase (catechin-α-amylase complex) which revealed the stable and mixed mode of inhibition during a simulation. The synergistic action of polyphenols or catechin present in seed extract may be responsible for the anti-oxidative stress and hypoglycaemic effects. The findings of this study may provide insight into the further development of a novel antidiabetic drug for T2DM.

Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma

Keywords:

• Flow cytometry
• faba bean
• polyphenols
• synergistic effect
• molecular dynamics simulation
• antidiabetic drug

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the School of Biochemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (BHU), Varanasi, India, for providing research facilities, as well as NBPGR New Delhi, BHU’s Interdisciplinary School of Life Sciences (ISLS), SAIF IIT Bombay, and Tel Aviv University, Israel, for providing a computational facility for molecular dynamics simulation and also the Central Instrument Facility (CIFC)-IIT(BHU), Varanasi.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.