From Traditional Food to Nutraceuticals: LC-HRMS Identifies Leaves and Roots Antidiabetic Metabolites of Amaranthus spinosus L. and Amaranthus viridis L. from Buru Island (Wallacea Areas)

The leaves and roots of A. spinosus and A. viridis on Buru Island (Wallacea region) as antidiabetics have received little attention. The goal of this study was to identify active chemicals in the leaves and roots of these two plant species that could be used as antidiabetic nutraceuticals. The method in this research used five approaches: LC-HRMS, chemometric analysis, volcano plot, Venn diagram, and in silico. The results showed that the roots of both plant species had the highest chemical diversity, especially in the acid, lipid, and derivative groups. The specific compounds identified consisted of LAS (8), LAV, RAS (13), and RAV (14). In silico analysis indicated 25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3 and ursolic acid from the RAS sample as two of the best potential antidiabetic alternatives, with binding energies of (-10.1 kcal/mol) and (-9.7 kcal/mol) to the COX-2 protein, respectively. On the other hand, the positive control (diclofenac) showed a weaker binding energy of -7.5 kcal/mol. In conclusion, 25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3 and ursolic acid compounds have a strong inhibitory effect on COX-2 protein, indicating that they are viable natural candidates for the development of future antidiabetic therapies.