Abstract:Six weeks BALB/c mice were fed with an atherogenic diet for 24 weeks and purified water ad libitum. An experimental group was given betanidin, orally, during the last 40 days of the experiment at a dose of 9.6 mg per mouse per day. Negative controls were fed with standard rodent chow only. Glycemia was measured at the end of the experiment, after overnight fasting. The group treated with betanidin presented a highly significant reduction of 50.94% compared to positive controls. We conclude that betanidin reduces glycemia in BALB/c mice by an unidentified mechanism.

Betanin is a phytocompound whose effect in steatohepatitis has not yet been tested. Betanin was extracted from the fruits of Hylocereus ocamponis, and its effects were evaluated in a mice model for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Six-week-old male BALB/c mice fed with a high-fat diet received 9.6 mg of betanin per day during 40 days. Body, liver, and epididymal fat pad weights and the levels of blood serum total cholesterol, triglycerides, high-density lipoproteins, alanine aminotransferase, blood nitrogen urea, creatinine, and total antioxidant capacity were measured. Hepatosteatosis and inflammatory infiltration were categorized, and the relative cell area of hepatocytes was determined. Betanin inhibited the inflammatory infiltration of the liver ( P = 4.000 × 10−6) and the necrosis of hepatocytes ( P = 9.634 × 10−7); it also produced a predominance of microvesicular steatosis ( P = 9.634 × 10−7), decreased epididymal fat pad weight ( P = 8.250 × 10−4), and increased blood serum total cholesterol ( P = 0.011). Betanin is a promising compound for fatty liver, steatohepatitis, and chronic liver disease.