Abstract
The aim of the current study is to examine the improving effect of Sasa borealis stem (SBS) extract extracts on high-fat diet (HFD)-induced hepatic steatosis in rats. To determine the hepatoprotective effect of SBS, we fed rats a normal regular diet (ND), HFD, and HFD supplemented with 150 mg/kg body weight (BW) SBS extracts for five weeks. We found that the body weight and liver weight of rats in the HFD + SBS group were significantly lower than those in the HFD group. Significantly lower serum total cholesterol (TC) and triglyceride (TG) concentrations were observed in the SBS-supplemented group compared with the HFD group. We also found that the HFD supplemented with SBS group showed dramatically reduced hepatic lipid accumulation compared to the HFD alone group, and administration of SBS resulted in dramatic suppression of TG, TC in the HFD-induced fatty liver. In liver gene expression within the SBS treated group, PPARα was significantly increased and SREBP-1c was significantly suppressed. SBS induced a significant decrease in the hepatic mRNA levels of PPARγ, FAS, ACC1, and DGAT2. In conclusion, SBS improved cholesterol metabolism, decreased lipogenesis, and increased lipid oxidation in HFD-induced hepatic steatosis in rats, implying a potential application in treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
Highlights
Obesity-related nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), one of the most common liver diseases, is significantly associated with metabolic syndrome, including obesity, dyslipidemia, and insulin resistance [1,2]
Sasa borealis stem (SBS) supplementation in rats fed a high-fat diet (HFD) was effective in decreasing liver triglyceride and total cholesterol, and resulted in marked lowering of liver weight increases compared to the HFD group
Our data from histopathological examination of livers from the rats showed a significant increase in the number and size of fatty hepatocytes upon HFD administration but returned to normal levels in rats that were administered SBS. These results demonstrated that the HFD-induced hepatic pathological changes were significantly inhibited in SBS-fed rats. These results clearly demonstrated that treatment with SBS resulted in effective improvement of hepatic steatosis induced by HFD
Summary
Obesity-related nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), one of the most common liver diseases, is significantly associated with metabolic syndrome, including obesity, dyslipidemia, and insulin resistance [1,2]. A hypercaloric dietary habit results in increased body weight, serum lipids, and hepatic lipid accumulation. Increased liver lipid accumulation causes lipid peroxidation, leading to further advancement of liver damage. Accumulation of triglycerides, termed as hepatic steatosis, which is characterized by fibrosis and necroinflammation, and can progress to cirrhosis and terminal liver failure, has been proposed as an indication of more severe liver disease [3]. Hepatic steatosis is always coupled with other diseases, i.e., obesity, diabetes, and hyperlipidemia [4]. The clinical implications of hepatic steatosis are due mainly to its potential to cause chronic inflammation and progress to cirrhosis and liver failure
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