Lotus Seedpod Extracts Reduced Lipid Accumulation and Lipotoxicity in Hepatocytes
1
Department of Family Medicine, Changhua Christian Hospital, No. 135 Nanhsiao Street, Changhua City 50006, Taiwan
2
Department of Nutrition, Chung Shan Medical University, No. 110, Sec. 1, Jianguo N. Road, Taichung City 40201, Taiwan
3
Department of Medical Laboratory and Biotechnology, Chung Shan Medical University, No. 110, Sec. 1, Jianguo N. Road, Taichung City 40201, Taiwan
4
Department of Clinical Laboratory, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, No. 110, Sec. 1, Jianguo N. Road, Taichung City 40201, Taiwan
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work and therefore share corresponding authorship.
Nutrients 2019, 11(12), 2895; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11122895
Received: 28 October 2019 / Revised: 21 November 2019 / Accepted: 26 November 2019 / Published: 28 November 2019
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Diet and Active Compounds on Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease)
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is closely associated with metabolic disorders, including hepatic lipid accumulation and lipotoxicity. Plant-derived polyphenols have attracted considerable attention in the prevention of NAFLD. Lotus seedpod, rich in polyphenols, is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine. Previous studies have showed that lotus seedpod possess radioprotective, antioxidant, anti-cancer, and anti-inflammatory activities. In this study, the in vitro hepatoprotective effect of lotus seedpod extract (LSE) and its main component epigallocatechin (EGC) was examined. Firstly, oleic acid (OA), an unsaturated fatty acid, was used to induce the phenotype of NAFLD in human hepatocytes, HepG2 cells. LSE dose-dependently improved the OA-induced viability loss of HepG2 cells. Non-cytotoxic concentrations of LSE or EGC abolished intracellular lipid accumulation and oxidative stress in the OA-treated cells. In addition, LSE and EGC showed a minor effect on autophagy, and potential in reducing OA-induced occurrence of apoptosis confirmed by morphological and biochemical features, including an increase in the formation of apoptotic bodies, the exposure of phosphatidylserine, and activation of caspases. Molecular data showed the anti-apoptotic effect of LSE might be mediated via downregulation of the mitochondrial pathway. Our data imply that EGC-enriched LSE potentially could be developed as an anti-NAFLD agent.
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Keywords:
non-alcoholic fatty liver disease; lipid accumulation; lipotoxicity; polyphenols; lotus seedpod; oleic acid; apoptosis
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MDPI and ACS Style
Liu, Y.-T.; Lai, Y.-H.; Lin, H.-H.; Chen, J.-H. Lotus Seedpod Extracts Reduced Lipid Accumulation and Lipotoxicity in Hepatocytes. Nutrients 2019, 11, 2895.
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