Abstract:This study aimed to explore the anti-aging effect of pumpkin seed protein peptides on D-galactoseinduced aging mice.In this study，the components with the strongest antioxidant activity were selected from pumpkin seed protein peptides with different molecular weights for the animal experiment.In the experiment，a normal control group，a model control group，and low-，medium-，and high-dose[250，500 mg/（kg·d）and 1 000 mg/（kg·d）]pumpkin seed protein peptides groups were set up.After 42 days of intervention by gavage，the body weight，organ coefficient，the content of metabolites（creatinine and total cholesterol），and biochemical indices[total antioxidant capacity（T-AOC），superoxide dismutase（SOD）activity，monoamine oxidase（MAO）activity，B-cell lymphoma-2（Bcl-2）content，and Caspase-3 activity]were measured.The experimental results showed that the protein peptide with a molecular weight of less than 3 kDa had the strongest antioxidant activity.Compared with the model control group，the medium-and high-dose pumpkin seed protein peptides groups could improve the organ coefficient of aging mice and reduce the content of metabolites creatinine and total cholesterol.At the same time，the high-dose pumpkin seed protein peptides group showed increased T-AOC，SOD activity，and Bcl-2 content and decreased activities of MAO and Caspase-3.The results showed that pumpkin seed protein peptides could effectively improve the organ coefficient of aging mice，inhibit the body's oxidative stress response，regulate the activity of apoptosis factors in tissue cells，and delay aging.