Objectives: This study was conducted to evaluate the longevity potential of damaurone D (DaD), a component of the damask rose, in the animal model Caenorhabditis elegans.
Methods: To investigate the effect of DaD on the longevity, lifespan assay was carried out. Fluorescence intensity of transgenic mutants was quantified to test the expression levels of stress proteins. A genetic study using single gene knockout mutants was designed to determine the target genes of DaD.
Key findings: DaD prolonged the mean lifespan of wild-type nematodes by 16.7% under normal conditions and also improved their stress endurance under thermal, osmotic, and oxidative stress conditions. This longevity-promoting effect could be attributed to in vivo antioxidant capacity and its up-regulating effects on the expressions of stress-response proteins such as SOD-3 and HSP-16.2. In addition, DaD treatment attenuated food intake, body length, lipofuscin accumulation and age-dependent decline of motor ability. Gene-specific mutant studies showed the involvement of genes such as daf-2, age-1, and daf-16.
Conclusions: These results suggest that DaD has beneficial effects on the longevity, and thus it can be a valuable plant origin lead compound for the development of nutraceutical preparations targeting ageing and ageing-related diseases.
Keywords: Caenorhabditis elegans; Damaurone D; ageing; lifespan.
© 2018 Royal Pharmaceutical Society.