Abstract
BackgroundCentral obesity and insulin resistance are associated with metabolic syndrome (MetS) which is aggravated by diet and sedentary lifestyle. Athrixia phylicoides (AP) is reported by rural communities to have medicinal benefits associated with MetS such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. This study was aimed to investigate the effects of AP on diet-induced MetS in Wistar rats to validate its ethnopharmacological use.MethodsAP was profiled for phytochemicals by LC-MS. After induction of MetS with high energy diet (HED), 30 male rats were divided into five treatment groups (n = 6): normal diet control, HED control, HED + AP 50 mg/Kg BW, HED + AP 100 mg/Kg BW and HED + 50 mg/Kg BW metformin. The rats were treated daily for 8 weeks orally after which weight gain, visceral fat, total cholesterol, free fatty acids (FFAs) and adipokine regulation; leptin: adiponectin ratio (LAR) were assessed. Also, glucose homeostatic parameters including fasting blood glucose (FBG), oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), glucose transporter 4 (GLUT 4), insulin and homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) were determined.ResultsFindings showed that AP was rich in polyphenols. The HED control group showed derangements of the selected blood parameters of MetS. AP reversed diet-induced weight gain by reducing visceral fat, total blood cholesterol and circulating FFAs (p ≤ 0.05). Treatment with AP improved adipokine regulation depicted by reduced LAR (p<0.05). Treatment with AP improved parameters of glucose homeostasis as demonstrated by reduced FBG and HOMA-IR (p ≤ 0.05) and increased GLUT 4 (p<0.05).ConclusionAthrixia phylicoides tea infusion was shown to possess anti-obesity and anti-inflammatory properties, improved glucose uptake and reduce insulin resistance in diet-induced MetS in rats which could be attributed to its richness in polyphenols. Therefore, AP could have potential benefits against type 2 diabetes and obesity which are components of MetS validating its ethnopharmacological use.
Highlights
Central obesity and insulin resistance are associated with metabolic syndrome (MetS) which is aggra‐ vated by diet and sedentary lifestyle
Phenolic profile by LC‐mass spectrometer (MS) analysis Profiling by Liquid chromatography- mass spectrometer (LC-MS) showed the presence of phenolic phytochemicals including trans-cinnamic acid, syringaldehyde, vanillic acid, protocatechuic acid, syringic acid, p-coumaric acid, gallic acid, ferulic acid and caffeic acid with the latter having the highest relative abundance followed by vanillic and syringic acids
Effect of treatment with A. phylicoides on energy intake, body weight gain and visceral fat accumulation All treatment groups had similar caloric intake. Rats treated with both doses of Athrixia phylicoides (AP) had lower net body weight gain (p < 0.05) compared to high energy diet (HED) fed rats and were similar to Normal Diet (ND) fed rats
Summary
Central obesity and insulin resistance are associated with metabolic syndrome (MetS) which is aggra‐ vated by diet and sedentary lifestyle. The metabolic factors include obesity, hypertriglyceridaemia, Low high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), high blood pressure and high fasting blood glucose. The consumption of high fat/energy diet (HED) and/or lack of physical activity leads to the accumulation of body fat due to sustained positive energy balance [3]. This fat is stored in adipocytes as triglyceride (TG) under the control of insulin. Increase in circulating FFAs is associated with decreased whole body insulin-stimulated glucose uptake thereby leading to IR [5]
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