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Research Paper|Volume 15, Issue 22|pp 12749—12762

Nectandrin B significantly increases the lifespan of Drosophila - Nectandrin B for longevity

Ji-Seon Ahn1, Nasir Uddin Mahbub2, Sura Kim2, Han-Byeol Kim1,2, Jong-Soon Choi3,4, Hea-Jong Chung1, Seong-Tshool Hong2
  • 1Gwangju Center, Korea Basic Science Institute, Gwangju 61751, Republic of Korea
  • 2Department of Biomedical Sciences and Institute for Medical Science, Jeonbuk National University Medical School, Jeonju, Jeonbuk 54907, Republic of Korea
  • 3Research Center for Materials Analysis, Korea Basic Science Institute, Daejeon, Republic of Korea
  • 4College of Medicine, Chung-Ang University, Seoul 06974, Republic of Korea
* Equal contribution
Received: June 19, 2023Accepted: October 19, 2023Published: November 19, 2023
https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.205234

Copyright: © 2023 Ahn et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Abstract

Phytochemicals are increasingly recognized in the field of healthy aging as potential therapeutics against various aging-related diseases. Nutmeg, derived from the Myristica fragrans tree, is an example. Nutmeg has been extensively studied and proven to possess antioxidant properties that protect against aging and alleviate serious diseases such as cancer, heart disease, and liver disease. However, the specific active ingredient in nutmeg responsible for these health benefits has not been identified thus far. In this study, we present evidence that Nectandrin B (NecB), a bioactive lignan compound isolated from nutmeg, significantly extended the lifespan of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster by as much as 42.6% compared to the control group. NecB also improved age-related symptoms including locomotive deterioration, body weight gain, eye degeneration, and neurodegeneration in aging D. melanogaster. This result represents the most substantial improvement in lifespan observed in animal experiments to date, suggesting that NecB may hold promise as a potential therapeutic agent for promoting longevity and addressing age-related degeneration.