Beneficial Effects of Fermented Soybean through PPARs Activation in Metabolic Syndrome

Fermented soybean is an important fermented soybean food in Korea as it has many health benefits. The phytochemicals that are modified and concentrated by fermentation with Bacillus subtilis are isoflavone aglycones, flavonols, and gallic acid, which were produced by the activity of β-glucosidase and esterase. On the other hand, isoflavone glycosides and flavanol gallates were decreased. It possesses various biological activities such as anti-oxidative, anti-microbial, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic and neuroprotective effects. Therefore, recent research has paid great attention to fermented soy food products to improve human health. We performed in silico molecular docking simulation of increased phytochemical components during soybean fermentation for peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs), which is a well-known nuclear receptor family for preventive roles in metabolic and inflammatory diseases. The results demonstrated that components such as epicatechin, daidzein, catechin, and genistein showed strong binding affinity with PPARs, suggesting their potential therapeutic effects. In this review, we highlighted the recent studies and possible action mechanisms of phytochemical extracts during the fermentation process of soybean and their potential health benefits to humans, especially for the treatment of the metabolic syndrome.