Phytochemical Screening and Protective Effects of Hancornia speciosa Leaf Extract Against Fatty Acid-Induced Lipotoxicity in HepG2 Cells
5 affiliations
- 1Institute of Biotechnology, Federal University of Uberlândia, Uberlândia 38405-319, Brazil
- 2Department of Pharmacy, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba 80210-170, Brazil
- 3Department of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Ouro Preto, Ouro Preto 35400-000, Brazil
- 4Institute of Exact, Natural Sciences and Education, Federal University of Triângulo Mineiro, Uberaba 38064-200, Brazil
- 5Institute of Chemistry, Federal University of Uberlândia, Uberlândia 38400-902, Brazil
Abstract
Hepatic steatosis is the hallmark of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), the most prevalent chronic liver disease worldwide. Lipotoxicity, resulting from excessive accumulation of fatty acids and bioactive lipid intermediates, is associated with increased oxidative stress, potentially leading to cell death. Thus, antioxidant bioactive compounds are considered promising therapeutic agents. This study characterized the phytochemical composition and evaluated the effects of an aqueous extract of Hancornia speciosa leaves (EH) on HepG2 cells with fatty acid-induced lipid accumulation. HPLC-ESI-MS/MS analysis annotated 17 compounds in EH, predominantly phenolic compounds. Exposure of HepG2 cells to oleic and palmitic acids increased lipid accumulation, cytotoxicity, and antioxidant enzyme activities. Treatment with EH at 50 (EH50) and 100 µg/mL reduced lipid accumulation and reactive oxygen species and restored catalase and glutathione S-transferase activities to control levels. Notably, only EH50 showed reduced cytotoxicity. Untargeted metabolomic profiling showed an increase in intracellular abundance of the feature annotated as C16 sphinganine following fatty acid exposure and lower abundance after EH50 treatment. These findings indicate that H. speciosa leaf extract attenuates fatty acid-induced lipid accumulation, lipotoxicity, and redox imbalance in HepG2 cells, and suggest that its protective effects may be associated with sphingolipid-related metabolism, thereby strengthening evidence for the species’ therapeutic potential and supporting further studies to elucidate the underlying mechanisms.
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BibTeX
@article{granato2026phytochemical,
title = {{Phytochemical Screening and Protective Effects of Hancornia speciosa Leaf Extract Against Fatty Acid-Induced Lipotoxicity in HepG2 Cells}},
author = {Maria Júlia Maia Gonçalves Granato and Frank Machado Silva and Vinícius Marques Arruda and Adilson Júnior Alves Bezerra and Bruno Quintanilha Faria and Mayara Medeiros de Freitas Carvalho and Terezinha Aparecida Teixeira and Tiara da Costa Silva and Diego Godina Prado and Hebréia Oliveira Almeida Souza and Joyce Ferreira da Costa Guerra},
journal = {Molecules},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/molecules31203707},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/31/20/3707},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Phytochemical Screening and Protective Effects of Hancornia speciosa Leaf Extract Against Fatty Acid-Induced Lipotoxicity in HepG2 Cells
AU - Maria Júlia Maia Gonçalves Granato
AU - Frank Machado Silva
AU - Vinícius Marques Arruda
AU - Adilson Júnior Alves Bezerra
AU - Bruno Quintanilha Faria
AU - Mayara Medeiros de Freitas Carvalho
AU - Terezinha Aparecida Teixeira
AU - Tiara da Costa Silva
AU - Diego Godina Prado
AU - Hebréia Oliveira Almeida Souza
AU - Joyce Ferreira da Costa Guerra
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Molecules
DO - 10.3390/molecules31203707
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/31/20/3707
AB - Hepatic steatosis is the hallmark of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), the most prevalent chronic liver disease worldwide. Lipotoxicity, resulting from excessive accumulation of fatty acids and bioactive lipid intermediates, is associated with increased oxidative stress, potentially leading to cell death. Thus, antioxidant bioactive compounds are considered promising therapeutic agents. This study characterized the phytochemical composition and evaluated the effects of an aqueous extract of Hancornia speciosa leaves (EH) on HepG2 cells with fatty acid-induced lipid accumulation. HPLC-ESI-MS/MS analysis annotated 17 compounds in EH, predominantly phenolic compounds. Exposure of HepG2 cells to oleic and palmitic acids increased lipid accumulation, cytotoxicity, and antioxidant enzyme activities. Treatment with EH at 50 (EH50) and 100 µg/mL reduced lipid accumulation and reactive oxygen species and restored catalase and glutathione S-transferase activities to control levels. Notably, only EH50 showed reduced cytotoxicity. Untargeted metabolomic profiling showed an increase in intracellular abundance of the feature annotated as C16 sphinganine following fatty acid exposure and lower abundance after EH50 treatment. These findings indicate that H. speciosa leaf extract attenuates fatty acid-induced lipid accumulation, lipotoxicity, and redox imbalance in HepG2 cells, and suggest that its protective effects may be associated with sphingolipid-related metabolism, thereby strengthening evidence for the species’ therapeutic potential and supporting further studies to elucidate the underlying mechanisms.
SN - 1420-3049
ER -