Antioxidant Activity and DAF-16-Associated Lifespan-Promoting Effects of Essential Oil from Melastoma sanguineum Sims in Caenorhabditis elegans
- 1Marine College, Shandong University, Weihai 264209, China
Abstract
Melastoma sanguineum Sims is a traditional medicinal plant with edible fruits, but little is known about the biological activities of its essential oil. In this study, Caenorhabditis elegans was used as an animal model to investigate the antioxidant and lifespan-promoting effects of M. sanguineum essential oil, designated EO-2141. EO-2141 showed in vitro antioxidant activity. In C. elegans, EO-2141 significantly extended mean lifespan and reduced lipofuscin accumulation. It also enhanced resistance to oxidative and thermal stress and reduced DCF fluorescence. In addition, EO-2141 reduced MDA levels and increased SOD and GSH-PX activities. Gene-expression analysis showed that EO-2141 upregulated daf-16 and the stress-responsive genes sod-3, ctl-2, and hsp-16.2, while reducing akt-1 expression. DAF-16::GFP analysis further showed that EO-2141 increased the proportion of worms exhibiting nuclear DAF-16 localization. Moreover, EO-2141 failed to produce a significant lifespan extension in daf-16(mgDf50) mutants, further implicating DAF-16 in the longevity response to EO-2141. These findings demonstrate the antioxidant and lifespan-promoting effects of EO-2141 in C. elegans and provide transcriptional, subcellular-localization, and genetic evidence supporting the involvement of DAF-16 in its longevity response.
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BibTeX
@article{cui2026antioxidant,
title = {{Antioxidant Activity and DAF-16-Associated Lifespan-Promoting Effects of Essential Oil from Melastoma sanguineum Sims in Caenorhabditis elegans}},
author = {Xue Cui and Xu Liu and Jing-Shan Wu and Ying Han and Heng-Jia Wei and Ying-Xiu Li},
journal = {Molecules},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/molecules31203585},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/31/20/3585},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Antioxidant Activity and DAF-16-Associated Lifespan-Promoting Effects of Essential Oil from Melastoma sanguineum Sims in Caenorhabditis elegans
AU - Xue Cui
AU - Xu Liu
AU - Jing-Shan Wu
AU - Ying Han
AU - Heng-Jia Wei
AU - Ying-Xiu Li
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/09
JO - Molecules
DO - 10.3390/molecules31203585
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/31/20/3585
AB - Melastoma sanguineum Sims is a traditional medicinal plant with edible fruits, but little is known about the biological activities of its essential oil. In this study, Caenorhabditis elegans was used as an animal model to investigate the antioxidant and lifespan-promoting effects of M. sanguineum essential oil, designated EO-2141. EO-2141 showed in vitro antioxidant activity. In C. elegans, EO-2141 significantly extended mean lifespan and reduced lipofuscin accumulation. It also enhanced resistance to oxidative and thermal stress and reduced DCF fluorescence. In addition, EO-2141 reduced MDA levels and increased SOD and GSH-PX activities. Gene-expression analysis showed that EO-2141 upregulated daf-16 and the stress-responsive genes sod-3, ctl-2, and hsp-16.2, while reducing akt-1 expression. DAF-16::GFP analysis further showed that EO-2141 increased the proportion of worms exhibiting nuclear DAF-16 localization. Moreover, EO-2141 failed to produce a significant lifespan extension in daf-16(mgDf50) mutants, further implicating DAF-16 in the longevity response to EO-2141. These findings demonstrate the antioxidant and lifespan-promoting effects of EO-2141 in C. elegans and provide transcriptional, subcellular-localization, and genetic evidence supporting the involvement of DAF-16 in its longevity response.
SN - 1420-3049
ER -