Abstract:Aspongopus chinensis Dallas (ACD) is classified as a traditional medicinal and edible insect, and exhibits diverse biological effects. Polypeptides from ACD (hereinafter referred to as ACD polypeptides) were used to treat arecoline-induced GES-1 cells to clarify their protective effects against arecoline-induced GES-1 cell injury. After treatment, antioxidant and mitochondrial function indicators were evaluated. Treatment with 250 and 1 000 μg/mL of ACD polypeptides increased respective cell viability scores by 4.94% and 10.89%, superoxide dismutase activities by 22.33% and 38.29%, and glutathione content by 23.65% and 40.10%, while reducing respective lactate dehydrogenase activities by 1.51% and 8.99% and reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels by 25.62% and 48.75%. Additionally, ACD polypeptides alleviated mitochondrial damage by modulating mitochondrial membrane potential and ATPase activity. Transcriptomic analyses revealed that ACD polypeptides mitigate GES-1 cell injury by regulating necroptosis. Finally, RT-qPCR and western blot were employed to confirm that ACD polypeptides downregulate p62, Hsp90, cPLA2, RIPK1, RIPK3, and MLKL expression in this pathway (P<0.01). In summary, ACD polypeptides mitigate cellular oxidative damage, preserve mitochondrial function, and alleviate cell necrosis by downregulating key genes and protein expression in the necroptosis pathway. This study provides new insights into mitigating arecoline-induced damage to the gastric mucosa and establishes a theoretical foundation for developing ACD polypeptide products.
