Enhanced antidiabetic efficacy and safety of compound K⁄β-cyclodextrin inclusion complex in zebrafish

Background: 20(S)-Protopanaxadiol 20-O-D-glucopyranoside, also called compound K (CK), exerts antidiabetic effects that are mediated by insulin secretion through adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-sensitive potassium (K_ATP) channels in pancreatic β-cells. However, the antidiabetic effects of CK may be limited because of its low bioavailability.

Methods: In this study, we aimed to enhance the antidiabetic activity and lower the toxicity of CK by including it with β-cyclodextrin (CD) (CD-CK), and to determine whether the CD-CK compound enhanced pancreatic islet recovery, compared to CK alone, in an alloxan-induced diabetic zebrafish model. Furthermore, we confirmed the toxicity of CD-CK relative to CK alone by morphological changes, mitochondrial damage, and TdT-UTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) assays, and determined the ratio between the toxic and therapeutic dose for both compounds to verify the relative safety of CK and CD-CK.

Results: The CD-CK conjugate (EC₅₀ = 2.158μM) enhanced the recovery of pancreatic islets, compared to CK alone (EC₅₀ = 7.221μM), as assessed in alloxan-induced diabetic zebrafish larvae. In addition, CD-CK (LC₅₀ = 20.68μM) was less toxic than CK alone (LC₅₀ = 14.24μM). The therapeutic index of CK and CD-CK was 1.98 and 9.58, respectively.

Conclusion: The CD-CK inclusion complex enhanced the recovery of damaged pancreatic islets in diabetic zebrafish. The CD-CK inclusion complex has potential as an effective antidiabetic efficacy with lower toxicity.