The prevalence of chronic diseases has increased steadily over the last 20 years. The side effects of drugs used to treat chronic disease have always been a problem, owing to the need for long-term medication. Many studies have attempted to discover drugs from natural sources with fewer side effects. In this study, we investigated the possibility of using jujube leaf as a potential anti-diabetic drug source or food supplement. The IC50 values of acarbose and jujube leaf extract on a-glucosidase were 2.59 and 0.37 mg/mL, respectively. In vitro tests showed that the inhibition of a-glucosidase was maintained after the jujube extract was passed through a simulated digestive system, but no inhibition of a-amylase was observed either before or after the in vitro digestion. The jujube leaf extract showed mixed non-competitive inhibition. Jujube leaf extract is expected to be safer and cheaper than synthetic inhibitors.

• Youngje Jo(Department of Agricultural Biotechnology)
• Sujin Hwang(Department of Food and Biotechnology, Hoseo University)
• Seokwon Lim(Department of Food and Biotechnology, Hoseo University)
• Young Jin Choi(Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Center for Food and Bioconvergence, Research Institute of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University)