title: The Resin from Protium heptaphyllum Prevents High-Fat Diet-Induced Obesity in Mice: Scientific Evidence and Potential Mechanisms.
abstract: Herbal compounds rich in triterpenes are well known to regulate glucose and lipid metabolism and to have beneficial effects on metabolic disorders. The present study investigated the antiobesity properties of resin from Protium heptaphyllum (RPH) and the possible mechanisms in mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD) for 15 weeks. Mice treated with RPH showed decreases in body weight, net energy intake, abdominal fat accumulation, plasma glucose, amylase, lipase, triglycerides, and total cholesterol relative to their respective controls, which were RPH unfed. Additionally, RPH treatment, while significantly elevating the plasma level of ghrelin hormone, decreased the levels of insulin, leptin, and resistin. Besides, HFD-induced increases in plasma levels of proinflammatory mediators TNF-α, IL-6, and MCP-1 were significantly lowered by RPH. Furthermore, in vitro studies revealed that RPH could significantly inhibit the lipid accumulation in 3T3-L1 adipocytes (measured by Oil-Red O staining) at concentrations up to 50 μg/mL. These findings suggest that the antiobese potential of RPH is largely due to its modulatory effects on various hormonal and enzymatic secretions related to fat and carbohydrate metabolism and to the regulation of obesity-associated inflammation.
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Programme in Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-140 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil ; Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-270 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Karine Maria Martins Bezerra
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Carvalho
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Programme in Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-140 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil ; Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-270 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: José Delano Barreto
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Marinho Filho
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Pharmacy, Odontology and Nurse, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-160 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Tiago Sousa
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: de Melo
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-270 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Ana Jérsia
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Araújo
authors.affiliation: INCT-IBISAB-Brazilian Semi-Arid Institute of Biomedicine, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-270 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Josiane da Silva
authors.initials: Jda S
authors.lastname: Quetz
authors.affiliation: Haroldo Juaçaba Hospital, Cancer Institute of Ceará, 60430-230 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Maria do Perpétuo Socorro Saldanha
authors.initials: Mdo P
authors.lastname: da Cunha
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-270 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Karina Moura
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: de Melo
authors.affiliation: Department of Organic Chemistry, Federal University of Piauí, 64049-550 Teresina, PI, Brazil.
authors.forename: Armenio Andre de Carvalho Almeida
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: da Silva
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, State University of Ceará, 60740-000 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Adriana Rocha
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Tomé
authors.affiliation: INCT-IBISAB-Brazilian Semi-Arid Institute of Biomedicine, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-270 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Alexandre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Havt
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Pharmacy, Odontology and Nurse, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-160 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Said Gonçalves da Cruz
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Fonseca
authors.affiliation: Department of Morphology, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-170 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Gerly Anne de Castro
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Brito
authors.affiliation: Department of Organic Chemistry, Federal University of Piauí, 64049-550 Teresina, PI, Brazil.
authors.forename: Mariana Helena
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Chaves
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-270 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil ; INCT-IBISAB-Brazilian Semi-Arid Institute of Biomedicine, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-270 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Vietla Satyanarayana
authors.initials: VS
authors.lastname: Rao
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-270 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil ; INCT-IBISAB-Brazilian Semi-Arid Institute of Biomedicine, Faculty of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, 60430-270 Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Flávia Almeida
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Santos