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The combination effects of quercetin on starch and digestive enzymes reduce postprandial blood glucose in rats

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Abstract

Quercetin is the most abundant flavonoid found in human diet. In the present study, the effects of quercetin on postprandial hyperglycemia (PPHG) were investigated in two ways. First, the complexes of quercetin and starch were prepared and characterized. Quercetin can occupy the helix of starch and interact with it through secondary bonds. The digestibility of starch decreased with the increasing proportion of quercetin in the complexes. Second, the inhibitory activities of quercetin on α-glucosidase and α-amylase were investigated in both in vitro and in vivo. Quercetin showed very strong inhibitory activity on α-glucosidase, while its inhibitory activity on α-amylase was far weaker than acarbose. Quercetin is the non-competitive inhibitor of α-glucosidase. Fluorescence titration showed that quercetin and α-glucosidase had one binding site and the binding constant lgKa was 3.70. After oral administration of quercetin–starch complexes in rats, the maximum level of postprandial blood glucose was reduced and delayed. Besides, quercetin also improved the PPHG after administration of sucrose and maltose in rats. Hence, it is deduced that the regulation of quercetin on PPHG is the result of its combination effects on starch and digestive enzymes. The complexes of quercetin and starch may be useful for the development of low-glycemic food.

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All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in the article.

Abbreviations

PPHG:

Postprandial hyperglycemia

IC50:

50% Inhibitory concentration

PNPG:

4-Nitrophenyl α-D-glucopyranoside

RDS:

Rapid digestive starch

SDS:

Slow digestive starch

RS:

Resistant starch

AUC:

Area under the curve

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Number 32060541).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Jiangxi Key Laboratory of Natural Product and Functional Food, College of Food Science and Engineering, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang, 330045, China

    Jian-Feng Zhou, Hai-Xia Xu, Zhong-Ping Yin, Ji-Guang Chen & Qing-Feng Zhang

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Correspondence to Hai-Xia Xu or Qing-Feng Zhang.

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The animal experiments were conducted in accordance with the National Research Council’s Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals and approved by the Experimental Animal Management and Ethics Committee of Jiangxi Agricultural University with number of JXAULL-2021-76.

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Zhou, JF., Xu, HX., Yin, ZP. et al. The combination effects of quercetin on starch and digestive enzymes reduce postprandial blood glucose in rats. Eur Food Res Technol 250, 1189–1199 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00217-023-04455-y

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