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.

본 연구는 충청북도농업기술원 대추연구소에서 보유 중인 대추 유전자원 중 형태적 다형성을 나타내는 ‘일본’과 주요 대추 유전자원의 형태형질을 조사하고, 대추 육종 소재로서 ‘일본’의 가능성을 확인하기 위해 수행되었다. ‘일본’은 주요 대추 유전 자원과 비교하여 엽과 과실의 크기가 뚜렷하게 작고 당도가 낮았다. 하지만 과실에 폴리페놀 함량이 가장 높았으며, 항산화 능력 또한 가장 높았다. 또한 ‘일본’은 종자형성능이 가장 높았다. 대추 유전자원들의 형태형질을 이용하여 분석한 결과, 지리적 기원에 따라 유전자원들이 분류되었다. 특히 ‘일본’은 한국 및 중국 유전자원들과 명확히 구분되었다. 따라서 종자형성능이 우수하고 기능성 성분이 높은 ‘일본’은 추후 대추 유전연구 및 교배육종을 통한 품종 육성에 유용하게 이용될 수 있을 것으로 생각된다.

This study was carried out to investigate the physicochemical characteristics of maturating and dried jujube. The moisture contents of the unripe and ripe jujube were found to be 84.66 and 66.45%, respectively, but that of the dried jujube was 31.48%. The crude-fat and crude-ash contents of the dried jujube were much higher than those of the maturing jujube. The carbohydrate contents of the unripe, ripe, and dried jujube were found to be 13.51, 27.94, and 61.70%, respectively, and the soluble-protein contents were 0.88, 1.73, and 3.71%. The reducing-sugar content of the dried jujube was 18.82%, higher than that of the ripe jujube. The sucrose contents of the unripe and ripe jujube were 10.15 and 16.66 g/100 g, respectively, and that of the dried jujube was 33.46 g/100 g. The major fatty acids that were found to compose jujube were palmitic, oleic, pamitoleic, linoleic, and linolenic acid. The myristoleic and arachidonic acid contents were higher in the dried jujube than in the ripe jujube, but the palmitoleic acid content was lower in the dried jujube than in the ripe jujube. The major minerals of jujube were found to be Ca, K, Mg, and P, and the total mineral contents of the unripe, ripe, and dried jujube in this study were 343.38, 584.94, and 331.56 mg/100 g, respectively. The polyphenol contents of the unripe, ripe, and dried jujube were 309.12, 248.80, and 23.34 mg/100 g, respectively, while the vitamin C contents were 610.04, 310.22, and 423.27 mg/100 g.