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. 2018 Jan 23;23(2):11.
doi: 10.3390/molecules23020011.

Estrogenic Effects of the Extracts from the Chinese Yam (Dioscorea opposite Thunb.) and Its Effective Compounds in Vitro and in Vivo

Mengnan Zeng  1   2 , Li Zhang  3   4 , Miao Li  5 , Beibei Zhang  6   7 , Ning Zhou  8 , Yingying Ke  9   10 , Weisheng Feng  11   12 , Xiaoke Zheng  13   14
Affiliations

Estrogenic Effects of the Extracts from the Chinese Yam (Dioscorea opposite Thunb.) and Its Effective Compounds in Vitro and in Vivo

Mengnan Zeng et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to explore the estrogenic effects of the extracts from Chinese yam and its effective compounds.

Methods: The activity of the yam was investigated by the uterine weight gain of mice and a proliferation assay of breast cancer cell lines (MCF-7 cell); the estrogenic activity was comprehensively evaluated by a serum pharmacology experiment. The levels of estradiol (E2), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), and luteinizing hormone (LH) were also measured. Western blot analysis and antagonist assays with faslodex (ICI182,780), methylpiperidino-pyrazole (MPP), Delta (9) -tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), and G-15 were used to explore the mechanism of the effects of the yam. To find the effective compounds of the yam which play a role in its estrogen-like effects, we used the same methods to study the effects of adenosine and arbutin.

Results: The Chinese yam and two main compounds, adenosine and arbutin, have estrogen-like effects. The mechanism of the yam which plays a role in its estrogen-like effects was mainly mediated by the estrogen receptors ERα, ERβ, and GPR30; that of adenosine was mainly mediated by estrogen receptors ERα and ERβ, and that of arbutin was mainly mediated by estrogen receptors ERβ and GPR30.

Conclusions: The Chinese yam has estrogen-like effects; adenosine and arbutin are two of the effective compounds in the yam which play a role in its estrogen-like effects.

Keywords: Chinese yam; adenosine; arbutin; estrogen-like effect.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The expression of ERα, ERβ, and GPR30 in the uterus tested by the Western blot method (n = 3). LY: Low dose of yam, LH: High dose of yam. ** p < 0.01 compared to the control group.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Blockade of ER and GPR30 completely abolished the proliferation of yam-stimulated MCF-7 cells (n = 4). * p < 0.05; ** p < 0.01 compared to controls. (a) Effects of ICI182,780 on the proliferation of yam-stimulated MCF-7 cells. (b) Effects of MPP on the proliferation of yam-stimulated MCF-7 cells. (c) Effects of THC on the proliferation of yam-stimulated MCF-7 cells. (d) Effects of G-15 on the proliferation of yam-stimulated MCF-7 cells.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The expression of ERα, ERβ, and GPR30 in the uterus and MCF-7 cells tested by the Western blot method (n = 3). ad: adenosine, ar: arbutin. (a–d) were the expression of ERα, ERβ, and GPR30 in the uterus. (e–h) were the expression of ERα, ERβ, and GPR30 in MCF-7 cells. * p < 0.05; ** p < 0.01 compared to the control group.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Effect of ICI 182780, MPP, THC and G-15 on MCF-7 cell proliferation (n = 3). (a) Effects of ICI182,780 on the proliferation of adenosine- and arbutin-stimulated MCF-7 cells. (b) Effects of MPP on the proliferation of adenosine- and arbutin-stimulated MCF-7 cells. (c) Effects of THC on the proliferation of adenosine- and arbutin-stimulated MCF-7 cells. (d) Effects of G-15 on the proliferation of adenosine- and arbutin-stimulated MCF-7 cells. * p < 0.05; ** p < 0.01 compared to the control group.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Effect of MPP, THC and G-15 on the expression of ERα, ERβ and GPR30 in MCF-7 cells (n = 3). The MPP, THC and GPR30 were added 30 minutes before treatment of 17β-E2, yam, adenosine and arbutin.
Figure 6
Figure 6
HPLC-MS fingerprint of the yam, adenosine and arbutin. Adenosine and arbutin were verified as genuine resveratrol tetramers in the Chinese yam.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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