Standardized Aronia melanocarpa Extract as Novel Supplement against Metabolic Syndrome: A Rat Model.

Vladimir Jakoviljevic,Petar Milic,Tamara Nikolic Turnic,Isidora Milosavljevic,Ivan Srejovic,Milica Labudovic Borovic,Jovana Jeremic,Nevena Jeremic,Vesna Vucic,Vladimir Zivkovic,Miroslav Mitrovic,Sergey Bolevich,Jovana Bradic

doi:10.3390/ijms20010006

Abstract

The aim of our study was to examine the effects of different dietary strategies, high-fat (HFd) or standard diet (Sd) alone or in combination with standardized oral supplementation (0.45 mL/kg/day) of Aronia melanocarpa extract (SAE) in rats with metabolic syndrome (MetS). SAE is an official product of pharmaceutical company Pharmanova (Belgrade, Serbia); however, the procedure for extraction was done by EU-Chem company (Belgrade, Serbia). Rats were divided randomly into six groups: control with Sd, control with Sd and SAE, MetS with HFd, MetS with HFd and SAE, MetS with Sd and MetS with Sd and SAE during 4 weeks. At the end of the 4-week protocol, cardiac function and liver morphology were assessed, while in the blood samples glucose, insulin, iron levels and systemic redox state were determined. Our results demonstrated that SAE had the ability to lower blood pressure and exert benefits on in vivo and ex vivo heart function. Moreover, SAE improved glucose tolerance, attenuated pathological liver alterations and oxidative stress present in MetS. Obtained beneficial effects of SAE were more prominent in combination with changing dietary habits. Promising potential of SAE supplementation alone or in combination with different dietary protocols in triggering cardioprotection should be further examined in future.

Highlights

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) represents one of the metabolic disorders characterized by abdominal obesity, dyslipidemia, hypertension, insulin resistance and diabetes mellitus (DM) type 2 [1,2]
Body Mass Index (BMI) was statistically higher in groups with metabolic syndrome (MetS) (MetS + HFd, MetS + HFd + standardized A. melanocarpa extract (SAE), MetS + standard diet (Sd), MetS + Sd + SAE) than in healthy rats (CTRL, SAE)
Body Mass Index (BMI) of Healthy and Rats with MetS after 4-Weeks of Dietary Changes BMI was statistically higher in groups with MetS (МetS + HFd, МetS + HFd + SAE, МetS + Sd, МetS + Sd + SAE) than in healthy rats (CTRL, SAE)

Summary

Introduction

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) represents one of the metabolic disorders characterized by abdominal obesity, dyslipidemia, hypertension, insulin resistance and diabetes mellitus (DM) type 2 [1,2]. There is a great concern since MetS directly promotes the development of cardiovascular disorders, possibly because it results in increased oxidative stress and low-grade inflammation [3]. Increasing incidence of MetS associated with the undesirable side—effects and high cost of available drugs indicates the need to discover new, less harmful herbal medicines efficient in controlling both blood glucose and lipids [4,5]. A lot of plant extracts as well as plant-derived biomoleculs such as polyphenols, have been under research for the prevention and therapy of MetS [1]. It has been well documented that polyphenols, especially anthocyanins and quercetin, exert the potential to enhance the glucose uptake by muscle and adipocyte cells, exerting antidiabetic effect [6]

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion