Effects of Fermented Artemisia annua L. and Salicornia herbacea L. on Inhibition of Obesity In Vitro and In Mice

Plant extracts including secondary metabolites have anti-inflammatory and anti-obesity activities. This study was conducted to investigate the anti-obesity properties of fermented Artemisia annua (AW) and Salicornia herbacea (GW) in vitro and in mice. The metabolite profiling of AW and GW extracts was performed using UHPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap-MS/MS, and gene expression was analyzed using real-time PCR for adipocyte difference factors. The anti-obesity effects in mice were measured using serum AST, ALT, glucose, TG, and cholesterol levels. Metabolites of the plant extracts after fermentation showed distinct differences with increasing anti-obesity active substances. The efficacy of inhibitory differentiation adipogenesis of 3T3-L1 adipocytes was better for GW than AW in a concentration-dependent manner. RT-PCR showed that the GW extract significantly reduced the expression of genes involved in adipocyte differentiation and fat accumulation (C/EBPα, PPARγ, and Fas). In C57BL/6 mice fed the HFD, the group supplemented with AW and GW showed reduced liver weight, NAS value, and fatty liver by suppressing liver fat accumulation. The GW group significantly reduced ALT, blood glucose, TG, total cholesterol, and LDL-cholesterol. This study displayed significant metabolite changes through biotransformation in vitro and the increasing anti-obesity effects of GW and AW in mice. GW may be applicable as functional additives for the prevention and treatment of obesity.

Antiobesity Effects of Extract from Spergularia marina Griseb in Adipocytes and High-Fat Diet-Induced Obese Rats

Obesity has recently risen and become a serious health concern in Korea according to the westernized diet and altered lifestyle. Hence, there is a growing interest in the supplementation of phytochemicals to find a safe and effective functional ingredient to treat obesity. Spergularia marina Griseb (SM) has traditionally been used as a natural herb against chronic diseases in Korea. In this study, we investigated the antiobesity effects of SM in vitro and in vivo. SM ethanol extract (SME) inhibited proliferation and differentiation in murine adipocytes and primary porcine pre-adipocytes in a dose-dependent manner. In the in vivo study, supplementation of SM powder (SMP) remarkably attenuated fat accumulation in HFD-induced obese rats. In addition, SMP supplementation improved lipid profiles in the serum and tissues of high-fat induced obese rats. Collectively, these data indicated that SME exhibited antiobesity effects by modulating adipogenesis and lipolysis. Furthermore, SMP could be developed as an obesity-induced metabolic syndrome treatment.

Effects of Salicornia herbacea on Growth Performance, Meat Quality, Excreta Microbial Populations, and Noxious Gas Emissions in Broiler Chicks

The current study was conducted to evaluate the effects of adding Salicornia herbacea extracts to the drinking water on the growth performance, meat quality, excreta microbial population, and noxious gas emission in broiler chicks. A total of 544 one-day-old broiler chicks (Ross 308) were used in a 35-d experiment. Broiler chicks were allocated to four treatments with eight replicates, based on a completely randomized design. Diet was the same for all treatments, but a liquid phytogenic supplementation using different quantities of S. herbacea was provided in the drinking water as follows: control (CON), with no S. herbacea; 1 cc/L S. herbacea (SAL1); 5 cc/L S. herbacea(SAL2); and 10 cc/L S. herbacea (SAL3). During d 22–35, and d 1–35, broilers supplemented with S. herbacea extracts had a higher body weight gain (BWG) compared with the broilers in the CON group (P<0.05), but broilers supplemented with S. herbacea extracts had a lower feed conversion ratio (FCR) when compared with broilers in the CON group (P<0.05). Supplementation with S. herbacea extracts had linear effects on the abdominal fat and the redness (a*) of meat (P<0.05). There were no significant differences between excreta microbial populations and excreta noxious gas emissions in broilers in the CON group, or broilers supplemented with S. herbacea extracts. In conclusion, the results of this study demonstrate that S. herbacea supplementation positively affected the growth performance and meat quality in broilers, indicating that S. herbacea can be safely used to replace antibiotic as a growth promoter, thereby reducing the risk of antibiotic resistance issues.

Lipid-lowering effects of Zanthoxylum schinifolium Siebold & Zucc. seed oil (ZSO) in hyperlipidemic rats and lipolytic effects in 3T3-L1 adipocytes

On the basis of the antiatherosclerotic effect of Zanthoxylum schinifolium, the therapeutic potential of Zanthoxylum schinifolium seed oil (ZSO) was tested in terms of the blood lipid profile and obesity in rats. The lipolytic effects of ZSO were determined in adipocytes and the total body and liver weight were decreased in rats. Compared with the high-cholesterol high-fat (HCHF) group, the rats in the HCHF+ZSO group showed improved levels of hyperlipidemia indicators. Furthermore, western blot analysis confirmed that the improvement of hyperlipidemia indicators was induced by stimulation of lipoprotein lipase expression. Additional results indicated that the reduction in body weight was likely caused by phosphorylation of hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL) via the protein kinase A pathway, ultimately leading to lipolysis. In conclusion, the results of the in vivo experiment showed that ZSO improved the lipid profiles in the blood, lowering cardiovascular disease and arteriosclerosis and degrading cellular lipids by activating HSL.