Protective effect of silibinin on islet β cells in C57BL/6J mice fed a highfat diet / 中南大学学报(医学版)

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE@#To explore the eff ect of silibinin on β cells in C57BL/6J mice fed a high-fat diet and the possible mechanisms.@*METHODS@#A total of 18 male C57BL/6J mice at 3 weeks old were divided into a normal chow group (n=6), a high-fat diet group (n=6) and a high-fat diet plus silibinin group (n=6). Aft er intervention for 10 weeks, fasting blood glucose (FBG), fasting insulin (FINS), triglycerides (TG), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), creatinine (Cr) and blood urea nitrogen (BUN), lipid metabolism, antioxidant enzyme activities and apoptosis were evaluated. Pancreatic tissues were isolated to examine insulin-induced gene-1 (Insig-1), sterol regulatory element binding protein-1c (SREBP-1c) and fatty acid synthetase (FAS) mRNA and protein expression.@*RESULTS@#Compared with the high-fat diet group, the function of insulin secretion was improved, and the level of blood glucose was decreased in the high-fat diet plus silibinin group (P0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#Silibinin can protect β cells of mice fed a high-fat diet, and this effect might be related to, at least partially, increase in its antioxidative ability through regulation of insig-1/SREBP-1c pathway. Moreover, silibinin is safe for long-term treatment.