Journal article

Publication year: 2021

Pages: 9238-9247

Journal: Food & Function

Volume number: 12

Issue number: 19

ISSN: 2042-6496

eISSN: 2042-650X

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.1039/d1fo01363g

Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry

Abstract: 
Solanum anguivi Lam. fruits (SALF) are traditionally consumed as a remedy for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, data regarding the potential anti-diabetic effect of SALF and its underlying mechanisms are scarce. As the fruit fly's energy metabolism has been suggested to be comparable with mammals including the secretion of insulin-like peptides, we fed Drosophila melanogaster a high-sugar diet (HSD) to induce a T2DM-like phenotype and subsequently exposed them to a HSD supplemented with SALF. Following, flies were analyzed for various biomarkers in relation to energy metabolism. The HSD-induced glucose levels were significantly down-regulated in flies exposed to a HSD supplemented with SALF. In addition, flies exposed to SALF-supplemented HSD exhibited a better survival in comparison to HSD-fed counterparts. Other parameters of the energy metabolism such as triglyceride levels, weights, and fitness were not affected by SALF supplementation. This was also true for the expression levels of the insulin-like-peptides 3 and 6 as well as for spargel, the Drosophila homolog of PPAR gamma-co-activator 1 alpha, a central player in mitochondrial biogenesis. Overall, the present study shows that SALF significantly lowered the HSD-induced glucose levels and increased the survival while the biomarkers of the energy metabolism were not affected.

Harvard Citation style: Nakitto, A., Rudloff, S., Borsch, C. and Wagner, A. (2021) Solanum anguivi Lam. fruit preparations counteract the negative effects of a high-sugar diet on the glucose metabolism in Drosophila melanogaster, Food and Function, 12(19), pp. 9238-9247. https://doi.org/10.1039/d1fo01363g

APA Citation style: Nakitto, A., Rudloff, S., Borsch, C., & Wagner, A. (2021). Solanum anguivi Lam. fruit preparations counteract the negative effects of a high-sugar diet on the glucose metabolism in Drosophila melanogaster. Food and Function. 12(19), 9238-9247. https://doi.org/10.1039/d1fo01363g