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The Lifespan-Extending Effects of Nymphaea hybrid Root Extract in the Nematode Caenorhabditis elegans

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Abstract

Nymphaea hybrid, a water lily from the Nymphaeaceae family, has been found to exhibit some in vivo beneficial effects. In the present study we investigated the lifespan-extending effects of Nymphaea hybrid root extract in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. We found that Nymphaea hybrid root extract significantly extended the lifespan of C.elegans and improved its locomotion during aging. Moreover, Nymphaea hybrid root extract increased the resistance of C.elegans to both heat stress and oxidative stress. We found that the ability of Nymphaea hybrid root extract to increase lifespan was independent of its antimicrobial effects and was probably associated with its effects on the reproduction of C.elegans. In addition, the lifespan-extending effects of Nymphaea hybrid root extract were found to be dependent on the insulin/IGF signaling pathway. We also found that total flavones of Nymphaea hybrid could increase survival of C.elegans in both normal and adverse conditions, indicating that total flavones comprise the major fractions with lifespan-extending effects. Therefore, Nymphaea hybrid root extract has lifespan-extending effects in C.elegans and could be developed as a functional food.

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Abbreviations

NHRE:

Nymphaea hybrid root extract

C. elegans :

Caenorhabditis elegans

TFNH:

total flavones of Nymphaea hybrid

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (31300707), Scientific Starting Fund from Changzhou University (ZMF11020011), National Science and Technology Support Program (2011BAD33B03).

Conflict of Interest

Authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Human or Animal Studies

This article contain studies with Caenorhabditis elegans,which is a popular model animal.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Pharmaceutical Engineering and Life Sciences, Changzhou University, Changzhou, 213164, China

    Ziheng Zhuang, Min Li, Ting Xue, Linsong Yang & Hui Liu

  2. Nanjing Institute for Comprehensive Utilization of Wild Plants, Nanjing, 210042, China

    Ting Lv & Weiming Zhang

  3. College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, 210046, China

    Ting Lv, Yusi Zhang & Weiming Zhang

Authors
  1. Ziheng Zhuang
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  2. Ting Lv
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  3. Min Li
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  4. Yusi Zhang
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  5. Ting Xue
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  6. Linsong Yang
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  7. Hui Liu
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  8. Weiming Zhang
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Ziheng Zhuang or Weiming Zhang.

Additional information

Ziheng Zhuang, Ting Lv and Min Li are contributed equally to this work.

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Zhuang, Z., Lv, T., Li, M. et al. The Lifespan-Extending Effects of Nymphaea hybrid Root Extract in the Nematode Caenorhabditis elegans . Plant Foods Hum Nutr 69, 304–309 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11130-014-0448-3

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