Dopamine is secreted by the hypothalamus, which inhibits the proliferation and
effectiveness of lactotroph cells that release prolactin via dopamine D2
receptor (D2R). D2R activation inhibits lactotroph cell prolactin synthesis and
regulates prolactin gene expression. Although, commercial medications are
available for hypogalactia and agalactia, various plant sources significantly
alleviate these problems. Leptadenia reticulata (Jivanti) is one of the
important medicinal plants often consumed by nursing mothers to improve breast
milk production. However, mechanism and chemical constituents involved in the
inhibition of D2R by Jivanti is unclear. Therefore, in this study the
phytocompounds reported from Jivanti were used for in-silico analysis to predict
D2R inhibitory potential. The binding affinity value of campesterol and
β-sitosterol (− 10.1 and
−10.0 kcal/mol) with D2R has high revealed by molecular
docking and stable interaction reveled by molecular dynamics simulation. Thus,
these lead compounds could exert more D2R inhibitory activity resulting into
prolactin release, which may lead to an increase in breast milk production.
Although all selected compounds had fine permeation, non-toxic, and
non-carcinogenic characteristics predicted by ADMET, campesterol had good
solubility, absorption characteristics compared to other. Therefore, Jivanti,
which is traditionally known medicinal plant, could be explored as a medication
candidate to boost breast milk production.
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