Prediction of
Tyrosinase Inhibitory Activity of Compounds from Zingiber zerumbet L. using In Silico
Docking and Drug-Likeness Methods
Ngoc-Thach Vien, Quoc-Dang Quan, Nguyen Bao-Ngoc Phan, Minh-Quan To and Thien-Hoang
Ho
Res. J. Biotech.; Vol. 20(5); 92-99;
doi: https://doi.org/10.25303/205rjbt92099; (2025)
Abstract
Tyrosinase is a polyphenol oxidase containing a metalloenzyme that catalyses the
oxidation process in melanin synthesis, causing skin hyperpigmentation. Studies
on tyrosinase inhibition are gaining significant attention for treating skin hyperpigmentation
and may find further usage in agriculture, cosmetics and pharmacology. Zingiber
zerumbet, also known as “bitter ginger” or “pinecone ginger”, is a plant rich in
anti-inflammatory and antioxidant bioactive compounds. In this researh, we applied
molecular docking and drug-likeness to screen and predict the interaction between
compounds from Zingiber zerumbet and tyrosinase. Molecular docking of these compounds
onto tyrosinase was executed using Autodock Vina and the SwissADME online tool to
evaluate the drug-likeness/ADME properties.
The screening results identified 5 compounds with the most effective docking energies:
Germacrene B (-7,0 kcal/mol), 3-methyl kaempferol (-7,3 kcal/mol), kaempferol-3-O-methyl
ether (-7,4 kcal/mol), α-Cedrene (-7,5 kcal/mol) and kaempferol (-7,6 kcal/mol).
According to Lipinski’s rule of five, the drug-likeness/ADME suggested that all
5 compounds from Zingiber zerumbet effectively suppress the activity of tyrosinase.
