Functional rice cultivars goami and nokwon may lower body weight and improve lipid metabolism in high fat-fed mice cultivars

Abstract

The demand for functional foods is rapidly increasing due to the rising prevalence of metabolic diseases, particularly obesity and hyperlipidemia. In the few past years, various rice cultivars with enhanced functional quality and health-promoting properties have been produced. Functional rice Goami (high-amylose rice) and Nokwon (green-kerneled rice) have recently been developed, but little is known about their physiological activity. Hence, this study was conducted to determine the effect of functional rice on the body weight and lipid metabolism in mice under high-fat diet conditions. Forty male C57BL/6N mice were randomly divided and fed with experimental diets for 8 weeks: normal control (NC), high fat (HF), and high fat supplemented with white rice (HF-WR), Goami rice (HF-GR), and Nokwon rice (HF-NR). At the end of the experimental period, a marked increase in the body weight, plasma triglyceride level, and total cholesterol concentrations were found in the HF mice relative to the NC group. However, diet supplementation of Goami and Nokwon improved the lipid profile in mice through regulation of lipogenesis and adipokine production. These findings illustrate that the new functional rice cultivars Goami and Nokwon may be useful as biomaterials in the development of functional food for the prevention and treatment of high-fat, diet-induced hyperlipidemia and obesity.