MORINGA OLEIFERA ISOTHIOCYANATE: AN IN SILICO APPPROACH AGAINST ALDOSE REDUCTASE

Diabetic cataract is a major ocular complication of diabetes mellitus, in which persistent hyperglycemia promotes the polyol pathway and enhances the activity of aldose reductase, leading to oxidative and osmotic stress in the lens. The present study aimed to investigate literature-selected isothiocyanates from Moringa oleifera leaves as potential aldose reductase inhibitors using an integrated experimental and in silico approach. Moringa oleifera leaves were collected, shade-dried, powdered, and subjected to ethanolic maceration followed by remaceration to obtain the crude extract. Preliminary phytochemical screening was performed to identify the major classes of phytoconstituents present in the extract, with particular emphasis on isothiocyanates. A literature-based isothiocyanate, 4-(α-L-rhamnosyloxy)benzyl isothiocyanate, was selected for further computational evaluation. The physicochemical and pharmacokinetic properties of the selected compound were assessed using SwissADME, while toxicity prediction was performed using ProTox-3.0. Molecular docking was subsequently carried out against aldose reductase to evaluate the binding potential and interaction profile of the selected isothiocyanate. The selected compound exhibited a predicted docking score of −8.5076 kcal/mol, which was comparable to the reference aldose reductase inhibitor epalrestat (−8.5840 kcal/mol).The docking analysis indicated favorable interactions of the ligand within the active-site region of aldose reductase. Overall, the findings suggest that 4-(α-L-rhamnosyloxy) benzyl isothiocyanate from Moringa oleifera may possess potential as a lead compound for aldose reductase inhibition. However, further in vitro enzyme inhibition studies and in vivo investigations are required to validate the observed computational findings and establish its therapeutic potential against diabetic cataract.