Creation of resveratrol-enriched rice for the treatment of metabolic syndrome and related diseases

PLoS One. 2013;8(3):e57930. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0057930. Epub 2013 Mar 4.

Abstract

Resveratrol has been clinically shown to possess a number of human health benefits. As a result, many attempts have been made to engineer resveratrol production in major cereal grains but have been largely unsuccessful. In this study, we report the creation of a transgenic rice plant that accumulates 1.9 µg resveratrol/g in its grain, surpassing the previously reported anti-metabolic syndrome activity of resveratrol through a synergistic interaction between the transgenic resveratrol and the endogenous properties of the rice. Consumption of our transgenic resveratrol-enriched rice significantly improved all aspects of metabolic syndrome and related diseases in animals fed a high-fat diet. Compared with the control animals, the resveratrol-enriched rice reduced body weight, blood glucose, triglycerides, total cholesterol, and LDL-cholesterol by 24.7%, 22%, 37.4%, 27%, and 59.6%, respectively. The resveratrol-enriched rice from our study may thus provide a safe and convenient means of preventing metabolic syndrome and related diseases without major lifestyle changes or the need for daily medications. These results also suggest that future transgenic plants could be improved if the synergistic interactions of the transgene with endogenous traits of the plant are considered in the experimental design.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Acyltransferases / genetics
  • Acyltransferases / metabolism
  • Adipose Tissue
  • Animals
  • Blood Glucose / metabolism
  • Body Weight
  • Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid
  • Female
  • Food, Fortified*
  • Glucosides / metabolism
  • Glucosyltransferases / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Lipids / blood
  • Metabolic Syndrome / blood
  • Metabolic Syndrome / drug therapy*
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Oryza / genetics*
  • Plant Leaves / drug effects
  • Plant Leaves / enzymology
  • Plants, Genetically Modified
  • Resveratrol
  • Seeds / drug effects
  • Seeds / metabolism
  • Sirtuin 1 / metabolism
  • Stilbenes / metabolism
  • Stilbenes / pharmacology
  • Stilbenes / therapeutic use*

Substances

  • Blood Glucose
  • Glucosides
  • Lipids
  • Stilbenes
  • Acyltransferases
  • stilbene synthase
  • Glucosyltransferases
  • Sirt1 protein, mouse
  • Sirtuin 1
  • Resveratrol
  • polydatin

Grants and funding

This work was supported by a grant from the Next-Generation BioGreen 21 Program (No. PJ0079732012) and RDA program (No. PJ0075392012), Rural Development Administration, Korea. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.