2021 年 8 巻 3 号 p. 156-161
Accumulation of advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs) in the body due to glycative stress is a factor in the onset of aging and lifestyle-related diseases. Suppression of glycative stress is called anti-glycation. Anti-glycation includes suppression of postprandial hyperglycemia, suppression of glycation reaction, and decomposition and excretion of AGEs. Since aminoguanidine (AG), a substance having an AGE production inhibitory effect, has side effects, functional foods having a glycation reaction inhibitory activity are desired. In this study, for evaluating the anti-glycation effect of gardenia (Gardenia jasminoides Ellis) extract on the skin proteins, the glycation reaction inhibitory activity and AGE cross-linking breaking activity of genipin and crocetin, purified from gardenia, was measured. Keratin, collagen, and elastin were used as model proteins for the glycation reaction. Genipin and crocetin were found to suppress the production of fluorescent AGEs (F-AGEs), pentosidine, Nε-carboxymethyllysine (CML) and 3-deoxyglucosone (3DG). The activity of genipin on F-AGEs was strong with the half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) lower than that of crocetin. Its IC50 was 2.4 to 31.6 times lower than that of AG, a positive control. The AGE cross-linking breaking activity was 2.8 times stronger with genipin than with crocetin. These findings indicate that application of a preparation containing genipin and crocetin to the skin may improve the skin condition by suppressing the AGE production from skin proteins and by breaking the AGE cross-linking.
