Experimental and computational approaches to reveal the potential of <i>Ficus deltoidea</i> leaves extract as α-amylase inhibitor

<p><i>Ficus deltoidea</i> leaves extract are known to have good therapeutic properties such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic. We showed that 50% ethanol-water extract of <i>F. deltoidea</i> leaves and its pungent compounds vitexin and isovitexin exhibited significant (<i>p</i> < 0.05) α-amylase inhibition with IC₅₀ (vitexin: 4.6 μM [0.02 μg/mL]; isovitexin: 0.06 μg/mL [13.8 μM] and DPPH scavenging with IC₅₀ (vitexin: 92.5 μM [0.4 μg/mL]; isovitexin: 0.5 μg/mL [115.4 μM]). Additionally, molecular docking analysis confirmed that vitexin has a higher binding affinity (-7.54 kcal/mol) towards α-amylase compared to isovitexin (−5.61 kcal/mol). On the other hand, the molecular dynamics findings showed that vitexin-α-amylase complex is more stable during the simulation of 20 ns when compared to the isovitexin-α-amylase complex. Our results suggest that vitexin is more potent and stable against α-amylase enzyme, thus it could develop as a therapeutic drug for the treatment of diabetes.</p

Enzymatic inhibitory activity of <i>Ficus deltoidea</i> leaf extract on matrix metalloproteinase-2, 8 and 9

<p>Dysregulation of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) activity is known in many pathological conditions with which most of the conditions are related to elevate MMPs activities. <i>Ficus deltoidea</i> (FD) is a plant known for its therapeutic properties. In order to evaluate the therapeutic potential of FD leaf extract, we study the enzymatic inhibition properties of FD leaf extract and its major bioactive compounds (vitexin and isovitexin) on a panel of MMPs (MMP-2, MMP-8 and MMP-9) using experimental and computational approaches. FD leaf extract and its major bioactive compounds showed pronounced inhibition activity towards the MMPs tested. Computational docking analysis revealed that vitexin and isovitexin bind to the active site of the three tested MMPs. We also evaluated the cytotoxicity and cell migration inhibition activity of FD leaf extract in the endothelial EA.hy 926 cell line. Conclusively, this study provided additional information on the potential of FD leaf extract for therapeutical application.</p