Abstract
Beige adipocytes in white adipose tissue (WAT) have received considerable recognition because of their potential protective effect against obesity. Pycnogenol (PYC), extracted from French maritime pine bark, has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties and can improve lipid profiles. However, the effect of PYC on obesity has never been explored. In this study, we investigated the effects of PYC on obesity and WAT browning in apolipoprotein E- (ApoE-) deficient mice. The results showed that PYC treatment clearly reversed body weight and the mass of eWAT gain resulting from a high-cholesterol and high-fat diet (HCD), but no difference in food intake. The morphology results showed that the size of the adipocytes in the PYC-treated mice was obviously smaller than that in the HCD-fed mice. Next, we found that PYC upregulated the expression of genes related to lipolysis (ATGL and HSL), while it decreased the mRNA level of PLIN1. PYC significantly increased the expression of UCP1 and other genes related to beige adipogenesis. Additionally, PYC increased the expression of proteins related to the protein kinase A (PKA) signaling pathway. The findings suggested that PYC decreased obesity by promoting lipolysis and WAT browning. Thus, PYC may be a novel therapeutic target for obesity.
Highlights
The prevalence of obesity, which has increased regardless of region and country in recent decades, is associated with abnormal adipose tissue distribution [1, 2]
Adipose tissue is composed of white adipose tissue (WAT) and brown adipose tissue (BAT), and their dysfunction can lead to overweight and obesity [2]
We investigated, for the first time, the effects of PYC on the expression of genes related to the browning of WAT in apolipoprotein E- (ApoE-)deficient mice fed with an HCD, which may provide a novel strategy for preventing and treating obesity
Summary
The prevalence of obesity, which has increased regardless of region and country in recent decades, is associated with abnormal adipose tissue distribution [1, 2]. Adipose tissue is composed of white adipose tissue (WAT) and brown adipose tissue (BAT), and their dysfunction can lead to overweight and obesity [2]. WAT stores energy in the form of triglycerides, and excess WAT leads to metabolic abnormalities [3]. BAT is specialized to burn fat and generate energy in the form of heat because of its higher mitochondrial content with UCP1 expression, which plays an important role in the regulation of energy balance [3, 4]. A new type of adipocyte, brown-like adipocytes ( called beige adipocytes), was discovered in WAT. Beige fat exhibits similar metabolic properties to BAT, and both control energy homeostasis [4,5,6,7]. Brown fat and beige fat are potential therapeutic targets for obesity [4, 7]
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