Abstract
Ecklonia cava (E. cava) is a brown alga that has beneficial effects in models of type 1 and type 2 diabetes. However, the effects of E. cava extracts on diet-induced obesity and type 2 diabetes have not been specifically examined. We investigated the effects of E. cava on body weight, fat content, and hyperglycemia in high-fat diet- (HFD) induced obese mice and sought the mechanisms involved. C57BL/6 male mice were fed a HFD (60% fat) diet or normal chow. After 3 weeks, the HFD diet group was given extracts (200 mg/kg) of E. cava harvested from Jeju (CA) or Gijang (G-CA), Korea or PBS by oral intubation for 8 weeks. Body weights were measured weekly. Blood glucose and glucose tolerance were measured at 7 weeks, and fat pad content and mRNA expression of adipogenic genes and inflammatory cytokines were measured after 8 weeks of treatment. G-CA was effective in reducing body weight gain, body fat, and hyperglycemia and improving glucose tolerance as compared with PBS-HFD mice. The mRNA expression of adipogenic genes was increased, and mRNA expression of inflammatory cytokines and macrophage marker gene was decreased in G-CA-treated obese mice. We suggest that G-CA reduces obesity and glucose levels by anti-inflammatory actions and improvement of lipid metabolism.
Highlights
The incidence of obesity has increased at an epidemic rate in the world [1, 2]
When we examined the mRNA expression of genes that control lipid metabolism in the liver, we found that ACC1, FAS, and sterol regulatory element-binding protein (SREBP)-1c mRNA levels were significantly increased in phosphate-buffered saline- (PBS-)high-fat diet- (HFD) mice as compared with normal chow group (NC) mice
We found that G-cava harvested from Jeju (CA) treatment increased the mRNA expression levels of PPARγ, C/EBPα, SREBP-1c, and FAS in epididymal fat pads of HFD-fed mice
Summary
The incidence of obesity has increased at an epidemic rate in the world [1, 2]. Obesity is a state of energy imbalance resulting from excessive food intake and lack of exercise [3, 4] and contributes to the development of metabolic syndrome, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis, osteoarthritis, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease [4,5,6]. Exercise and dietary control are effective ways of treating obesity, pharmacological treatment is an important strategy. Many types of brown algae are widely eaten in Korea and Japan. Ecklonia cava is a species of brown alga found abundantly in the neritic regions of Korea and Japan [8]. This alga has received attention due to the medicinal effects of its carotenoids, fucoidans, and phlorotannins [9,10,11,12,13], including anti-inflammatory, antioxidative and antidiabetic effects [14, 15]. With regard to its antidiabetic effects, Ecklonia cava extract reduces blood glucose levels and increases insulin levels in streptozotocininduced diabetic mice, a model of type 1 diabetes [14], and the dieckol-rich extract of Ecklonia cava improves glucose
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