Abstract
Wrong alimentary behaviors and so-called “junk food” are a driving force for the rising incidence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) among children and adults. The “junk food” toxicity can be studied in “cafeteria” (CAF) diet animal model. Young rats exposed to CAF diet become obese and rapidly develop NAFLD. We have previously showed that bergamot (Citrus bergamia Risso et Poiteau) flavonoids, in the form of bergamot polyphenol fraction (BPF), effectively prevent CAF diet-induced NAFLD in rats. Here, we addressed if BPF can accelerate therapeutic effects of weight loss induced by a normocaloric standard chow (SC) diet. 21 rats fed with CAF diet for 16 weeks to induce NAFLD with inflammatory features (NASH) were divided into three groups. Two groups were switched to SC diet supplemented or not with BPF (CAF/SC±BPF), while one group continued with CAF diet (CAF/CAF) for 10 weeks. BPF had no effect on SC diet-induced weight loss, but it accelerated hepatic lipid droplets clearance and reduced blood triglycerides. Accordingly, BPF improved insulin sensitivity, but had little effect on leptin levels. Interestingly, the inflammatory parameters were still elevated in CAF/SC livers compared to CAF/CAF group after 10 weeks of dietary intervention, despite over 90% hepatic fat reduction. In contrast, BPF supplementation decreased hepatic inflammation by reducing interleukin 6 (Il6) mRNA expression and increasing anti-inflammatory Il10, which correlated with fewer Kupffer cells and lower inflammatory foci score in CAF/SC+BPF livers compared to CAF/SC group. These data indicate that BPF mediates a specific anti-inflammatory activity in livers recovering from NASH, while it boosts lipid-lowering and anti-diabetic effects of the dietary intervention.
Highlights
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common liver disorder in Western countries, caused by fat and sugar-rich diet, sedentary life style and genetic predisposition [1,2,3]
The mRNA levels of anti-inflammatory cytokines Il-10 were significantly elevated in rats fed with the CAF/standard chow (SC) compared with those fed with the CAF/CAF diet and bergamot polyphenol fraction (BPF) supplementation caused a further increase of mRNA levels of Il-10 (Figure 8B) suggesting that BPF supplementation exerts anti-inflammatory effects on steatohepatitis
We found that, BPF supplementation improved insulin resistance determining a significant decrease in insulin levels and HOMA-IR index, it had no significant effects on body fat and leptin levels
Summary
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common liver disorder in Western countries, caused by fat and sugar-rich diet, sedentary life style and genetic predisposition [1,2,3]. The hallmark of NAFLD is excessive triglyceride (TGL) accumulation in the form of lipid droplets (LDs) in the cytoplasm of hepatocytes, which may be an isolated event (non-alcoholic fatty liver) or accompanied by evidence of inflammation and cell injury with or without fibrosis (non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, NASH). NAFLD has become the leading cause of chronic liver disease among all age groups. Within the 10 years, juvenile NAFLD is expected to become the most prevalent cause of liver pathology, liver failure and indication for liver transplantation in childhood and adolescence in the Western world [5,6,7]
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