Tyrosinase Inhibitory Activity of Soybeans Fermented with Bacillus subtilis Capable of Producing a Phenolic Glycoside, Arbutin

Abstract

The production of arbutin, an effective tyrosinase inhibitor as well as an outstanding antioxidant, by 691 Bacillus strains isolated from soybean-based foods was tested to enhance the tyrosinase inhibitory activity of soybeans via fermentation with the strains. Among the strains tested, the 5 strains capable of significantly producing arbutin were identified as B. subtilis via 16S rRNA sequencing. When soybeans were fermented with each of the selected strains, the arbutin content was highest on day 1 of fermentation and decreased thereafter. However, the tyrosinase inhibitory activity of the fermented soybeans continuously increased as fermentation progressed, whereas the activity of non-inoculated soybeans was consistently low. The results indicate that arbutin enhances the tyrosinase inhibitory activity of soybeans in the early period of fermentation, while other substances besides arbutin contribute to the activity in the later period. Consequently, soybeans fermented with arbutin-producing B. subtilis strains could be considered as a natural source of cosmeceuticals and nutricosmetics used in skin lightening and may be of interest in the food industry because they contain well-known and powerful antioxidants such as arbutin and other substances.

Current Perspectives on the Physiological Activities of Fermented Soybean-Derived Cheonggukjang

“…Specifically, genistein was found to inhibit the formation of superoxide anion and exert antioxidant effects by removing the tumor-promoting factor hydrogen peroxide, which remarkably prevented the production of 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine from oxidative damage to DNA under ultraviolet (UV) irradiation or in the Fenton reaction system. The antioxidant properties of soybeans confer resistance to oxidative stress in vivo and are expected to decrease or prevent the occurrence of various diseases or aging caused by oxidation in vivo ( Figure 7 ) [ 4 , 20 , 24 , 31 , 115 , 116 , 117 , 118 , 120 , 121 , 122 , 123 , 124 ]. In addition, powdered CGJ extracted with alcohol was shown to possess stronger antioxidant properties than butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) ( Table 5 ) [ 31 , 124 ].…”

“…CGJ also exerted a neuroprotective effect in C57BL/6J mice by improving abnormal cognitive function [ 4 , 121 ], as shown in Table 8 . Moreover, CGJ improved neuroprotection by enhancing tyrosine inhibitory activity via arbutin production [ 124 ]. Figure 4 illustrates the predicted brain mechanism of CGJ in memory function [ 4 , 63 ].…”

“…The effects were enhanced upon combining the treatment with meridian back massage. To date, the skin brightening effect or antimicrobial activity of CGJ has been mostly associated with its tyrosinase inhibitory activity [ 124 ]. More recently, CGJ induced an anti-dry skin effect by downregulating the expression of gene associated with iNOS and COX-2, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin 6 (IL-6), and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) secretion, and upregulating the expression of genes involved in filaggrin and serine palmitoyltransferase ( Table 9 ) [ 125 , 155 ].…”

Efficient Enzymatic Synthesis of Lipophilic Phenolic Glycoside Azelaic Acid Esters and Their Depigmenting Activity

“…18 Arbutin also possessed melanininhibitory activity, which has been widely used in cosmetics as a skin-whitening agent. 19 However, the polyhydroxyl structure of phenolic glycosides results in their high polarity and low transdermal absorption capacity, which restricts their applications in cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. 20 Acylation is an efficient way to improve the liposolubility and bioactivities of phenolic glycosides.…”

“…Piceid, also known as polydatin, is a stilbene polyphenol that can be detected in grape, peanut, berries, red wines, hop cones, and many daily. − It has been found as a potential melanin production inhibitor with the inhibition ratio of about 60% at a concentration of 20 μg/mL, much higher than that of salidroside (about 30%) . Arbutin also possessed melanin-inhibitory activity, which has been widely used in cosmetics as a skin-whitening agent . However, the polyhydroxyl structure of phenolic glycosides results in their high polarity and low transdermal absorption capacity, which restricts their applications in cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries …”