Effect of flavonol glycoside in mulberry (Morus alba L.) leaf on glucose metabolism and oxidative stress in liver in diet-induced obese mice.

BACKGROUND: Mulberry therapies on type 2 diabetic patients or streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats have been reported to improve fasting blood glucose levels. We investigated the effects of dietary consumption of mulberry-leaf powder and purified quercetin 3-(6-malonylglucoside), the quantitatively major flavonol glycoside in mulberry leaves, on glucose and lipid metabolism in high-fat diet-induced obese mice. Male C57BL/6J mice aged 8 weeks were assigned to three groups (control, mulberry leaf powder (MLP), and quercetin 3-(6-malonylglucoside) (Q3MG)) and treated with their respective diets for 8 weeks. RESULTS: We found that dietary supplementation of 10 g MLP kg(-1) or 1 g Q3MG kg(-1) in high-fat diet effectively suppressed blood glucose levels. We also noted increased expression of glycolysis-related genes and suppression of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances concentrations in the liver of Q3MG group compared to control mice. CONCLUSION: Dietary consumption of Q3MG, the quantitatively major flavonol glycoside in mulberry leaves, improved hyperglycemia in obese mice and reduced oxidative stress in the liver.

Neuron differentiation-related genes are up-regulated in the hypothalamus of odorant-inhaling rats subjected to acute restraint stress.

To elucidate some physiopsychological effects of a pleasant odor, we analyzed gene expression profiles in the hypothalamus of rats which, under a restraint-stressed condition, inhaled (R)-(-)-linalool. Consequently, 697 probe sets showed significant expression changes in the odorant-inhaling rats subjected to 2 h of restraint stress (false discovery rate < 0.05). We observed up-regulation of 594 among them, including genes related to neuron differentiation and transcriptional regulatory factors. Another important result was that inhalation of (R)-(-)-linalool returned the expression of 49 restraint-regulated genes to a normal condition. In contrast, the inhalation also further up-regulated the expression of 16 restraint-up-regulated genes that included those encoding heat shock proteins as factors to induce some biological responses against stresses. In the present study we thus found the substantial example that, in the hypothalamus involved in feeding behaviors, an inhaled pleasant odor acts to regulate the gene expression related to the functions of neuronal developments to cope with stresses.

Effects of ingested turmeric oleoresin on glucose and lipid metabolisms in obese diabetic mice: a DNA microarray study.

Turmeric, the rhizome of Curcuma longa L., has a wide range of effects on human health. Turmeric oleoresin, an extract of turmeric, is often used for flavoring and coloring. Curcuminoids and turmeric essential oil are both contained in turmeric oleoresin, and both of these fractions have hypoglycemic effects. In the present study, we comprehensively assessed the effect of turmeric oleoresin on hepatic gene expression in obese diabetic KK-Ay mice using DNA microarray analysis and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Female KK-Ay mice aged 6 weeks (n = 6/group) were fed a high-fat diet containing turmeric oleoresin, curcuminoids, and essential oil for 5 weeks. The same diet without any of these fractions was used as a control diet. Ingestion of turmeric oleoresin and essential oil inhibited the development of increased blood glucose and abdominal fat mass, while curcuminoids only inhibited the increase in blood glucose. DNA microarray analysis indicated that turmeric oleoresin ingestion up-regulated the expression of genes related to glycolysis, beta-oxidation, and cholesterol metabolism in the liver of KK-Ay mice, while expression of gluconeogenesis-related genes was down-regulated. Real-time PCR analysis was conducted to assess the contribution of the curcuminoids and essential oil in turmeric oleoresin to the changes in expression of representative genes selected by DNA microarray analysis. This analysis suggested that curcuminoids regulated turmeric oleoresin ingestion-induced expression of glycolysis-related genes and also that curcuminoids and turmeric essential oil acted synergistically to regulate the peroxisomal beta-oxidation-related gene expression induced by turmeric oleoresin ingestion. These changes in gene expression were considered to be the mechanism by which the turmeric oleoresin affected the control of both blood glucose levels and abdominal adipose tissue masses. All of these results suggest that the use of whole turmeric oleoresin is more effective than the use of either curcuminoids or the essential oil alone.

Successful treatment of large-size advanced hepatocellular carcinoma by transarterial chemoembolization followed by the combination therapy of percutaneous ethanol-lipiodol injection and radiofrequency ablation.

We report a case of large-size hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) successfully treated with transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) followed by the combination therapy of percutaneous ethanol-lipiodol injection and radiofrequency ablation (PELI-RFA) and percutaneous ethanol-lipiodol injection (PELI) therapy. In the present case, the patient had a large-size advanced HCC, 7 cm in diameter, located in the S8 region of the liver. In addition, the hepatic reserve of the patient was severely poor. In order not to impair the poor hepatic reserve, we chose PELI-RFA and PELI, originally developed in our department and reported as milder treatment modalities than others. After TACE , PELI-RFA and PELI were performed several times, the HCC was totally destroyed and early enhancement shown by helical dynamic computed tomography disappeared completely after treatment. The hepatic reserve of the patient was not impaired by the series of treatments. Serum levels of tumor markers, alpha-fetoprotein and Des-gamma-carboxy prothrombin, were rapidly decreased to almost normal levels. PELI-RFA and PELI may be effective for the treatment of large-size HCC of patients with poor hepatic reserve.

Ingested cocoa can prevent high-fat diet-induced obesity by regulating the expression of genes for fatty acid metabolism.

OBJECTIVE: We previously found that ingested cocoa decreased visceral adipose tissue weight in rat. To elucidate the molecular mechanisms of that effect, we carried out experiments aimed at analyzing biochemical parameters and gene expression profiles. METHODS: Rats were fed either of two high-fat diets, differing only in supplementation with real or mimetic cocoa. On day 21, body weights, mesenteric white adipose tissue weights, and concentrations of serum triacylglycerol were measured. To investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying the effects of cocoa on lipid metabolism and triacylglycerol accumulation, we examined gene expression profiles in liver and mesenteric white adipose tissues using the GeneChip microarray system. RESULTS: Final body weights and mesenteric white adipose tissue weights were significantly lower in rats fed the real cocoa diet than in those fed the mimetic cocoa diet (P<0.05), and serum triacylglycerol concentrations tended to be lower in rats fed the real cocoa diet (P=0.072). DNA microarray analysis showed that cocoa ingestion suppressed the expression of genes for enzymes involved in fatty acid synthesis in liver and white adipose tissues. In white adipose tissue, cocoa ingestion also decreased the expression of genes for fatty acid transport-relating molecules, whereas it upregulated the expression of genes for uncoupling protein-2 as a thermogenesis factor. CONCLUSIONS: Ingested cocoa can prevent high-fat diet-induced obesity by modulating lipid metabolism, especially by decreasing fatty acid synthesis and transport systems, and enhancement of part of the thermogenesis mechanism in liver and white adipose tissue.