Anti-obesity Effect of Dioscorea oppositifolia Extract in High-Fat Diet-Induced Obese Mice and Its Chemical Characterization

Biol Pharm Bull. 2016;39(3):409-14. doi: 10.1248/bpb.b15-00849. Epub 2015 Dec 22.

Abstract

Dioscorea oppositifolia is a well-known edible and traditional medicine for the treatment of gastrointestinal diseases. In our previous study, D. oppositifolia exhibited both pancreatic lipase inhibition and an anti-adipogenesis effect in vitro. This study was performed to investigate the anti-obesity effect of D. oppositifolia on high-fat diet-induced obese mice. Female ICR mice were fed a high-fat diet with the 100 mg/kg of D. oppositifolia n-BuOH extract for 8 weeks. The high-fat diet mice received the 15 mg/kg Orlistat orally as a positive control. The body weight, parametrial adipose tissue weight, and the levels of triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), and low density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol in blood serum of female ICR mice were significantly decreased by feeding a high-fat diet with the n-BuOH extract of D. oppositifolia. An inhibitory effect of D. oppositifolia extract on dietary fat absorption was also clearly shown. The D. oppositifolia sample was found to contain 3,5-dimethoxy-2,7-phenanthrenediol and (3R,5R)-3,5-dihydroxy-1,7-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)-3,5-heptanediol as main components based on its phytochemical analysis. The present study is the first report of the anti-obesity effect by D. oppositifolia n-BuOH extract using an established disease model. The increase in fecal fat excretion by treatment of D. oppositifolia may be an effective approach for treating obesity and related diseases.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • 1-Butanol / chemistry
  • Adipose Tissue / drug effects
  • Adipose Tissue / growth & development
  • Animals
  • Anti-Obesity Agents / pharmacology
  • Anti-Obesity Agents / therapeutic use*
  • Cholesterol / blood
  • Diet, High-Fat
  • Dioscorea*
  • Feces / chemistry
  • Female
  • Lipid Metabolism / drug effects
  • Liver / drug effects
  • Liver / growth & development
  • Liver / metabolism
  • Mice, Inbred ICR
  • Obesity / blood
  • Obesity / drug therapy*
  • Organ Size / drug effects
  • Phytotherapy
  • Plant Extracts / pharmacology
  • Plant Extracts / therapeutic use*
  • Rhizome / chemistry
  • Triglycerides / blood

Substances

  • Anti-Obesity Agents
  • Plant Extracts
  • Triglycerides
  • 1-Butanol
  • Cholesterol