Antidiabetic Natural Compounds and Glycosidase Inhibition

Type 2 diabetes represents a growing global health challenge, driven by ageing populations and lifestyle factors. Post-prandial hyperglycaemia is a key therapeutic target, and the inhibition of digestive glycosidases offers a proven strategy to attenuate blood glucose excursions. A diverse array of natural products—including polyphenols, flavonoids, thiosugar sulfoniums and other carbohydrate mimetics—has been shown to interfere with α-glucosidase and α-amylase activity, slowing carbohydrate breakdown and absorption. Beyond enzyme inhibition, many of these compounds exert complementary antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects that may protect pancreatic β-cells and improve insulin sensitivity. Advances in extraction, formulation and biotechnological enhancement are expanding the yield and potency of these bioactives, while in vivo screening models provide crucial validation of efficacy and safety. The integration of traditional botanical knowledge with modern analytical and bioprocessing techniques underpins the development of functional foods, nutraceuticals and lead molecules for clinical development. Continued characterisation of structure–activity relationships, bioavailability and long-term metabolic outcomes will be essential to translate these natural glycosidase inhibitors into approved interventions for diabetes management.

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Antidiabetic Natural Compounds and Glycosidase Inhibition publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in antidiabetic natural compounds and glycosidase inhibition across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Glycosidase: Enzyme that catalyses the hydrolysis of glycosidic bonds in carbohydrates.

α-Glucosidase: Glycosidase that cleaves terminal α-linked glucose residues from oligosaccharides, key to post-prandial glucose release.

α-Amylase: Enzyme that hydrolyses internal α-1,4-glycosidic linkages in starch and glycogen, initiating carbohydrate digestion.

IC50: Concentration of an inhibitor required to reduce enzyme activity by 50 %, widely used to compare inhibitor potency.

References

1. In Vitro and In Vivo Evaluation for Antioxidant and Anti-Diabetic Properties of Cyperus rotundus L. Kombucha. Foods (2023).
2. Salacia spp.: recent insights on biotechnological interventions and future perspectives. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology (2024).
3. A review of antidiabetic active thiosugar sulfoniums, salacinol and neokotalanol, from plants of the genus Salacia. Journal of Natural Medicines (2021).