Beneficial effects of tea catechins on diet-induced obesity: stimulation of lipid catabolism in the liver.
OBJECTIVE
Obesity has increased at an alarming rate in recent years and is now a worldwide health problem. We investigated the effects of long-term feeding with tea catechins, which are naturally occurring polyphenolic compounds widely consumed in Asian countries, on the development of obesity in C57BL/6J mice.


METHODS
We measured body weight, adipose tissue mass and liver fat content in mice fed diets containing either low-fat (5% triglyceride (TG)), high-fat (30% TG), or high-fat supplemented with 0.1-0.5% (w/w) tea catechins for 11 months. The beta-oxidation activities and related mRNA levels were measured after 1 month of feeding.


RESULTS
Supplementation with tea catechins resulted in a significant reduction of high-fat diet-induced body weight gain, visceral and liver fat accumulation, and the development of hyperinsulinemia and hyperleptinemia. Feeding with tea catechins for 1 month significantly increased acyl-CoA oxidase and medium chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase mRNA expression as well as beta-oxidation activity in the liver.


CONCLUSIONS
The stimulation of hepatic lipid metabolism might be a factor responsible for the anti-obesity effects of tea catechins. The present results suggest that long-term consumption of tea catechins is beneficial for the suppression of diet-induced obesity, and it may reduce the risk of associated diseases including diabetes and coronary heart disease.
Murase
T
T
Biological Science Laboratories, Kao Corporation, Tochigi, Japan.
Nagasawa
A
A
Suzuki
J
J
Hase
T
T
Tokimitsu
I
I
D000273:Adipose Tissue; D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight; D002392:Catechin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004032:Diet / Q000009:adverse effects*; D050356:Lipid Metabolism; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009765:Obesity / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology; D008517:Phytotherapy / Q000379:methods; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000627:therapeutic use; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D013662:Tea
D010936:Plant Extracts; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D013662:Tea; D002392:Catechin