Extraction and quantification of 1-Deoxynojirimycin in Silkworm during metamorphosis and moulting stages

Abstract

The contents of 1-deoxynojirimycin (1-DNJ) in the silkworm, Bombyx mori, were examined using reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography at various developmental stages. Mulberry leaves and silkworms naturally contain 1-deoxynojirimycin (DNJ). Although the contents of DNJ and its actions in mulberry leaves have been studied for decades, the content of DNJ in silkworms and its use have received less attention. DNJ was extracted and quantified in a variety of silkworms including Tasar silkworms, Muga silkworms, Eri silkworms and Mulberry silkworms. Group VI silkworms are more active than the others. Then, for male and female larvae of silkworm species, the variation in DNJ contents was examined. Silkworm larvae's 1-DNJ concentration varies greatly depending on their developmental stage. Male larvae (133.25 ± 11.45 mg/100g) and female larvae (129.65 ± 10.25 mg/100g) are substantially higher in both male and female mulberry silkworms. The larvae of the 3rd and the 5th day were used to calculate the DNJ. Male larvae had a higher 1-DNJ accumulation efficiency than females and there was also a significant difference between silkworm strains. The current findings demonstrate that 1-DNJ tissue distribution is substantially increased in the blood, intestinal juice and the alimentary canal while none was found in the silk gland. Furthermore, 1-DNJ was not detected in silkworms fed with an artificial diet devoid of mulberry leaf powder. This shows that silkworms get 1-DNJ from mulberry leaves; they could not make it on their own. During the larval stage, the storage and excretion of 1-DNJ fluctuate. 1-DNJ was not found in newly hatched larvae and it was primarily accumulated during the early and middle stages of each instar, before being expelled at later stages. Furthermore, 1-DNJ can be extracted from larval excrement, making it ideal for the development of 1-DNJ-related goods.