Soojung Yu, Eunyeong Jeong (국립순천대학교)

Mina Lee (국립순천대학교)

Soojung Yu, Eunyeong Jeong (국립순천대학교)

Ducdat Le (국립순천대학교)

Vinhquang Truong (국립순천대학교)

Thinhulinh Dang (국립순천대학교)

Thientam Dinh (국립순천대학교)

Mina Lee (국립순천대학교)

Ilex rotunda, an evergreen tree in the holly family, has long been used in traditional medicine due to its high phenolic content and various pharmacological effects. This study aimed to investigate phenolic constituents from enriched fractions, guided by total phenolic content assays and feature-based molecular networking. Nine compounds were isolated and identified using various chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques. These isolates exhibited strong antioxidant activity in both free radical scavenging and intracellular ROS assays. Moreover, they significantly altered interleukin-2 (IL-2) production in CD3/CD28-stimulated Jurkat T cells. Western blot analysis suggested that these active compounds may suppress IL-2 production by inhibiting the activation of NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathways—specifically by downregulating the phosphorylation of p38, p65, ERK, and JNK proteins. Molecular docking results supported these findings by confirming the high binding affinity of the active compounds to target proteins. Our findings provide valuable insight into the potential of phenolic constituents from I. rotunda as pharmacologically active agents for alleviating oxidative stress and modulating immune responses, warranting further in-depth investigation.

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