Bioscience Evidence 2026, Vol.16, No.4, 202-220 http://bioscipublisher.com/index.php/be 205 dose-dependent manner, indicating that they have both proton-donating ability and peroxyl radical scavenging capacity (Zheng et al., 2020). Bioactive peptides derived from mung bean proteins are another important group of antioxidant compounds. Protein hydrolysates obtained by membrane separation showed that fractions with molecular weights below 1 kDa and rich in hydrophobic amino acids had the strongest DPPH, superoxide anion, and hydroxyl radical scavenging activities, as well as excellent metal ion chelating ability. These results indicate that peptide size and hydrophobicity are important factors affecting the interaction between peptides and free radicals or metal-binding sites (Sonklin et al., 2018). Further purification identified cysteine-containing peptides, such as HC, CGN, and CSGD, which exhibited strong DPPH, hydroxyl radical, and superoxide anion scavenging activities, together with high ferric reducing power and metal chelating capacity. Sonklin et al. (2021) suggested that the high antioxidant activity of these peptides is mainly related to the reactive sulfhydryl (-SH) groups in their peptide chains. Lipophilic peptides obtained from mung bean protein hydrolysates were able to inhibit the formation of both primary and secondary lipid oxidation products in emulsion and oil systems. This indicates that these peptides can localize at the oil–water interface, interact with lipid radicals, and delay lipid oxidation (Zheng et al., 2022). Mung bean polysaccharides mainly exert antioxidant activity through free radical scavenging and reducing capacity. Low-molecular-weight polysaccharides extracted from mung bean seed coats by alkaline extraction showed high DPPH, ABTS, and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP). This suggests that polysaccharide degradation exposes more available hydroxyl groups, thereby enhancing electron-donating ability and antioxidant activity (Ding et al., 2025). 3.2 Regulation of oxidative stress-related signaling pathways In addition to directly scavenging free radicals, several bioactive compounds from mung bean can regulate the endogenous antioxidant defense system. Mung bean antioxidant peptides (MBAPs) protected hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂)-injured human liver WRL-68 cells by reducing intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), restoring mitochondrial membrane potential, and improving cell viability to nearly normal levels. Western blot analysis showed that MBAPs significantly upregulated proteins related to the Keap1/Nrf2 signaling pathway, increased antioxidant enzyme levels by about two-fold, and reduced malondialdehyde (MDA) content by approximately 55%. These findings indicate that MBAPs activate the Keap1-Nrf2-ARE signaling axis and enhance cellular antioxidant capacity (Miao et al., 2023). Mung bean sprout-derived exosome-like nanoparticles (MELNs) showed significant antioxidant and anti-diabetic effects in high-fat diet/streptozotocin (HFD/STZ)-induced diabetic mice and insulin-resistant liver cells. MELNs reduced hepatic oxidative stress, increased the expression of Nrf2 and GLUT4, and promoted the production of HO-1 and SOD through PI3K/Akt-mediated inactivation of GSK-3β, thereby relieving the inhibitory effect of GSK-3β on Nrf2 (He et al., 2023). Dietary phytochemicals can also protect cells by activating the NRF2/ARE signaling pathway and its downstream antioxidant enzyme system, including GPx, SOD, CAT, and HO-1, with the involvement of kinases such as PI3K/Akt and GSK-3β (Thiruvengadam et al., 2021). 3.3 Anti-inflammatory activity and its molecular mechanisms Bioactive peptides derived from mung bean proteins have shown stable anti-inflammatory activity in both immune cells and animal models. In lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages, mung bean protein hydrolysate (MBPH) significantly reduced the levels of nitric oxide (NO), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and interleukin-1β (IL-1β), while promoting the secretion of the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, MBPH inhibited the activation of the NF-κB signaling pathway by suppressing IκBα phosphorylation and preventing the nuclear translocation of the p65 subunit, thereby producing anti-inflammatory effects (Diao et al., 2019). Among the MBPH fractions, the low-molecular-weight components showed the strongest inhibitory effects on LPS-induced inflammatory cytokine production and NF-κB signaling, indicating that peptide molecular weight is one of the key factors determining anti-inflammatory activity.
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