Cucumis melo ssp. Agrestis var. Agrestis Ameliorates High Fat Diet Induced Dyslipidemia in Syrian Golden Hamsters and Inhibits Adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 Adipocytes

Kripa Shankar; Sumit K Singh; Durgesh Kumar; Salil Varshney; Abhishek Gupta; Sujith Rajan; Ankita Srivastava; Muheeb Beg; Anurag Kumar Srivastava; Sanjeev Kanojiya; Dipak K Mishra; Anil N Gaikwad

doi:10.4103/0973-1296.172945

Cucumis melo ssp. Agrestis var. Agrestis Ameliorates High Fat Diet Induced Dyslipidemia in Syrian Golden Hamsters and Inhibits Adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 Adipocytes

Pharmacogn Mag. 2015 Oct;11(Suppl 4):S501-10. doi: 10.4103/0973-1296.172945.

Affiliations

¹ Division of Pharmacology, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India.
² Division of Botany, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India.
³ Division of Pharmacology, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India; Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India.
⁴ Division of Toxicology, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India.
⁵ Sophisticated Analytical Instrument Facility, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India.
⁶ Division of Botany, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India; Division of Pharmacology, CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India.

Abstract

Background: Cucumis melo ssp. agrestis var. agrestis (CMA) is a wild variety of C. melo. This study aimed to explore anti-dyslipidemic and anti-adipogenic potential of CMA.

Materials and methods: For initial anti-dyslipidemic and antihyperglycemic potential of CMA fruit extract (CMFE), male Syrian golden hamsters were fed a chow or high-fat diet with or without CMFE (100 mg/kg). Further, we did fractionation of this CMFE into two fractions namely; CMA water fraction (CMWF) and CMA hexane fraction (CMHF). Phytochemical screening was done with liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry LC- (MS)/MS and direct analysis in real time-MS to detect active compounds in the fractions. Further, high-fat diet fed dyslipidemic hamsters were treated with CMWF and CMHF at 50 mg/kg for 7 days.

Results: Oral administration of CMFE and both fractions (CMWF and CMHF) reduced the total cholesterol, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and very low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol levels in high fat diet-fed dyslipidemic hamsters. CMHF also modulated expression of genes involved in lipogenesis, lipid metabolism, and reverse cholesterol transport. Standard biochemical diagnostic tests suggested that neither of fractions causes any toxicity to hamster liver or kidneys. CMFE and CMHF also decreased oil-red-O accumulation in 3T3-L1 adipocytes.

Conclusion: Based on these results, it is concluded that CMA possesses anti-dyslipidemic and anti-hyperglycemic activity along with the anti-adipogenic activity.

Summary: The oral administration of Cucumis melo agrestis fruit extract (CMFE) and its fractions (CMWF and CMHF) improved serum lipid profile in HFD fed dyslipidemic hamsters.CMFE, CMWF and CMHF significantly attenuated body weight gain and eWAT hypertrophy.The CMHF decreased lipogenesis in both liver and adipose tissue.CMFE and CMHF also inhibited adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Abbreviation used: CMA: Cucumis melo ssp. agrestis var. agrestis, CMFE: CMA fruit extract, CMWF: CMA water fraction, CMHF: CMA hexane fraction, FAS: Fatty acid synthase, SREBP1c: Sterol regulatory element binding protein 1c, ACC: Acetyl CoA carboxylase, LXR α: Liver X receptor α.

Keywords: 3T3-L1 adipocytes; Cucumis melo ssp. agrestis var. agrestis; Syrian golden hamster; direct analysis in real time-mass spectrometry analysis; dyslipidemia; high-fat diet.