Treatment of Obese Zebrafish with Saringosterol Acetate through AMP Activated Protein Kinase Pathway.

OBJECT: Edible Brown Seaweed Sargassum fusiforme (Harvey) Setchell, 1931 abbreviated as Sargassum fusiforme was used for folk medical therapy in East Asia countries over five hundred years. Saringosterol acetate (SA) was isolated from S. fusiforme in our previous study and indicated various effects. However, anti-obesity activity of SA and its mechanism still unknown. METHOD: The inhibitory effect of SA, isolated from S. fusiforme, on adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 adipocytes was investigated in vitro and in zebrafish model. Cell toxicity, differentiation, signaling pathway, and lipid accumulation of SA treated 3T3-L1 adipocytes were determined. The body weight and triglyceride content of diet-induced obese (DIO) adult male zebrafish were measured from 12 to 17 weeks after fertilization. RESULT: SA attenuated the differentiation of cells and reduced lipid accumulation, and triglyceride content in the 3T3-L1 adipocytes. During the differentiation of adipocytes, SA suppressed fat accumulation and decreased the expression of signal factors responsible for adipogenesis. In SA-treated adipocytes, while fatty acid synthetase was downregulated, AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) was upregulated. Furthermore, SA suppressed body weight and triglyceride content in DIO zebrafish. CONCLUSION: SA is a potential therapeutic agent in the management of metabolic disorders, such as obesity.

Anti-Adhesive Properties of Calcium Alginate from Sargassum fusiforme against Particulate Matter-Induced Inflammation.

Fine dust generated by particulate matter (PM) pollution is a serious ecological issue in industrialized countries and causes disorders of the respiratory system and skin in humans. In the previous study, Sargassum fusiforme was treated with citric acid to remove heavy metals. In this study, the transfer of PM-mediated inflammatory responses through the skin to macrophages was evaluated. Moreover, the anti-adhesive effects of calcium alginate isolated from S. fusiforme (SFCA) against PM-induced inflammation were investigated. The structures of processing and unprocessing SFCA were then analyzed by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), revealing minimal change after acid-processing. SFCA had protective effects both in PM-stimulated HaCaT keratinocytes and RAW 264.7 macrophages. In cellular environments, it was found that SFCA attenuated signal protein expressions such as inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase (COX)-2, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), and pro-inflammatory cytokines. Furthermore, macrophages were added to the culture medium of PM-stimulated keratinocytes to induce inflammation. SFCA was observed to significantly inhibit inflammatory responses; additionally, SFCA showed an in vivo anti-adhesive effect in zebrafish embryos.