Pharmaceutical composition for preventing or treating muscle atrophy containing Salvia plebeia extract or its derived compounds as an active ingredient

Sarcopenia improvement material using rosmarinic acid and hispidulin from 50% ethanol extract of Salvia plebeia to prevent muscle protein degradation

This technology involves a pharmaceutical composition for preventing and treating muscle atrophy, a health functional food composition for preventing and improving muscle loss, and a method for producing them, using extracts of Salvia plebeia (a Lamiaceae plant) or its derived compounds, rosmarinic acid and hispidulin, as active ingredients. This extract reduces muscle protein degradation and increases synthesis, preventing the thinning of muscle fibers.

Reduced muscle mass triggers a vicious cycle leading to slower walking speed, weaker grip, falls, fractures, metabolic disorders, and cardiovascular disease. Muscle atrophy occurs not only from aging or lack of exercise but also from cachexia, sepsis, chemotherapy, and excessive exposure to stress hormones. In particular, glucocorticoids inhibit the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway, hindering protein synthesis and activating atrophy-related genes like Atrogin-1 and MuRF-1 to promote muscle protein degradation, yet safe, natural-based therapeutic materials to block this have been scarce.

This technology is obtained by grinding dried Salvia plebeia, extracting it with a solvent such as water or a lower alcohol (preferably 50% ethanol), then concentrating and freeze-drying it. It is designed to lower mRNA expression of MuRF-1 and Atrogin-1/MAFbx and increase p70S6K phosphorylation in myotube cells. It can be applied to health supplements for geriatric sarcopenia, aids for recovering from disuse atrophy due to long-term hospitalization or casting, and muscle loss management for patients on steroid medication, effectively preventing both qualitative and quantitative muscle loss by protecting muscle fiber thickness and count using extracts from a common wild herb.

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Key Features:

• Pharmaceutical composition for preventing or treating muscle atrophy, including sarcopenia, disuse atrophy, and muscular dystrophy, containing Salvia plebeia extract as an active ingredient
• Salvia plebeia extract that reduces MuRF-1 and Atrogin-1/MAFbx mRNA expression and increases p70S6K phosphorylation in myotube cells
• Salvia plebeia extract containing rosmarinic acid represented by Formula 1 or hispidulin represented by Formula 2 as an active ingredient
• Steps of mixing ground dried Salvia plebeia powder with a solvent such as 50% ethanol for extraction, followed by concentration and freeze-drying

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This invention was developed with support from the Ministry of Science and ICT for the development of methods to identify compound combinations with equivalent efficacy representing the overall activity of natural products.

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