Abstract
BackgroundCentipede grass (CG) originates from China and South America and is reported to contain several C-glycosyl flavones and phenolic constituents, including maysin and luteolin derivatives. This study aimed to investigate, for the first time, the antiobesity activity of CG and its potential molecular mechanism in 3T3-L1 cells.MethodsTo study the effect of CG on adipogenesis, differentiating 3T3-L1 cells were treated every day with CG at various concentrations (0–100 μg/ml) for six days. Oil-red O staining and triglyceride content assay were performed to determine the lipid accumulation in 3T3-L1 cells. The expression of mRNAs or proteins associated with adipogenesis was measured using RT-PCR and Western blotting analysis. We examined the effect of CG on level of phosphorylated Akt in 3T3-L1 cells treated with CG at various concentration s during adipocyte differentiation.ResultsDifferentiation was investigated with an Oil-red O staining assay using CG-treated 3T3-L1 adipocytes. We found that CG suppressed lipid droplet formation and adipocyte differentiation in 3T3-L1 cells in a dose-dependent manner. Treatment of the 3T3-L1 adipocytes with CG resulted in an attenuation of the expression of adipogenesis-related factors and lipid metabolic genes. The expression of C/EBPα and PPARγ, the central transcriptional regulators of adipogenesis, was decreased by the treatment with CG. The expression of genes involved in lipid metabolism, aP2 were significantly inhibited following the CG treatment. Moreover, the CG treatment down-regulated the phosphorylation levels of Akt and GSK3β.ConclusionsTaken collectively, these data indicated that CG exerts antiadipogenic activity by inhibiting the expression of C/EBPβ, C/EBPα, and PPARγ and the Akt signaling pathway in 3T3-L1 adipocytes.
Highlights
Centipede grass (CG) originates from China and South America and is reported to contain several C-glycosyl flavones and phenolic constituents, including maysin and luteolin derivatives
Dose dependent and time dependent. These results indicated that CG exerts antiadipogenic activity in 3T3-L1 adipocytes
Our results showed that the CG treatment strongly inhibited the expression of CCAAT/enhancer binding protein-β (C/EBPβ) in a dose-dependent manner in 3T3-L1 adipocytes and that the inhibition of adipocyte differentiation by CG correlates with the inhibition of C/EBPβ expression, which plays a critical role in adipocyte differentiation
Summary
Centipede grass (CG) originates from China and South America and is reported to contain several C-glycosyl flavones and phenolic constituents, including maysin and luteolin derivatives. Obesity is an important issue in the field of preventive medicine and public health because it is considered to be a risk factor associated with the development of multiple diseases, including heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes [1]. Obesity has become the leading metabolic disease and is a significant problem owing to Adipocyte differentiation is a complex process that is regulated by various transcription factors and adipogenesisrelated genes. The initial events are orchestrated by several transcriptional factors, CCAAT/enhancer binding protein-β (C/EBPβ), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ) and CCAAT/enhancer binding protein-α (C/EBPα) [4]. The expression of C/EBPα and PPARγ is associated with terminal differentiation, and these factors act in concert to generate fully mature adipocytes by their subsequent transactivation of adipocyte-specific genes [6]. PPARγ and C/EBPα activate the expression of lipid-metabolizing enzymes, such as fatty acid binding protein 4 (aP2), lipoprotein lipase (LPL), and fatty acid synthetase (FAS) [6,7]
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