Codium fragile reduces adipose tissue expansion and fatty liver incidence by downregulating adipo‐ and lipogenesis

• Published in: Journal of food biochemistry Vol. 46; no. 12; pp. e14395 - n/a
• Main Authors: Seo, Hyo‐Deok, Lee, Eunyoung, Ahn, Jiyun, Hahm, Jeong‐Hoon, Ha, Tae‐Youl, Lee, Dae‐Hee, Jung, Chang Hwa
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.12.2022
• Subjects: adipocyte differentiation; Animals; anti‐obesity effects; Cholesterol; Codium fragile; Fatty Liver; Incidence; Lipogenesis; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Obesity - drug therapy; Obesity - genetics; white adipose tissue; anti-obesity effects; fatty liver; lipogenesis; Codium fragile; white adipose tissue; adipocyte differentiation
• ISSN: 0145-8884; 1745-4514
• DOI: 10.1111/jfbc.14395

Codium fragile (C. fragile) is a marine alga with high functional food potential. Recent studies have proven C. fragile extract (CFE) effective against obesity. However, the exact underlying mechanism of CFE's anti‐obesity effects remains unclear. Herein, CFE was orally administered to male C57BL/6 mice for 7 weeks, along with a high‐fat diet. CFE (100 mg/kg) effectively induced weight loss, lowered serum cholesterol levels, and suppressed adipocyte differentiation in white adipose tissue (WAT). Furthermore, CFE effectively reduced hepatic total triglyceride, cholesterol, and lipid levels, while significantly improving liver size and color. mRNA expression analysis in WAT and liver tissue revealed that CFE significantly suppressed the expression of PPARγ and aP‐2 in adipocyte differentiation, and SREBP‐1c and FAS in de novo lipogenesis, suggesting that CFE's anti‐obesity effect is exerted by gene inhibition. Practical applications Research on marine plants with anti‐obesity effects has been increasing recently. This study demonstrated that C. fragile extract (CFE) is effective in reducing body weight and suppressing adipocyte differentiation, along with the improvement of fatty liver in mice fed with a high‐fat diet (HFD). The anti‐obesity effect of CFE was exhibited by the down‐regulation of adipogenesis and lipogenesis, respectively. Based on these results, C. fragile could be useful, not only to effectively combat obesity but also in improving obesity‐induced liver dysfunction. C. fragile extract (CFE) is effective in inducing weight loss and suppressing adipocyte differentiation, along with the improvement of obesity‐associated fatty liver in mice fed with a high‐fat diet (HFD).