Therapeutic Effects of Lithospermate B Complexed with Mg2+ or Zn2+ on Metabolic Syndrome Induced in Rats Fed with High-Fat Diet

Abstract

Excessive food consumption and insufficient exercise lead to the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in modern life, which consequently increases the risk of many chronic diseases. Magnesium lithospermate B (MLB) from Danshen has been demonstrated to improve metabolic changes in high-fat diet–fed rats with metabolic syndrome. In this study, Mg2+ in MLB was successfully replaced with Zn2+ to form zinc lithospermate B (ZLB) complex. MLB (10 mg/kg /day) and ZLB of various concentrations (1, 2.5, 5, and 10 mg/kg/day) were prepared and examined for their therapeutic effects on metabolic syndrome induced in rats fed with a high-fat diet. The results showed that both MLB and ZLB were able to recover or alleviate the abnormal physiological states of high-fat diet–fed rats including weight gain, epididymal fat accumulation, fatty liver, retarded blood lipid and glucose metabolism putatively caused by insulin resistance, and elevated levels of proinflammatory cytokine, leptin, and oxidative stress. In an overall view of the animal study, the effectiveness of ZLB supplementation seemed to be better than that of MLB supplementation for the recovery of high-fat-fed rats from metabolic syndrome.

Magnesium lithospermate B supplementation improved prenatal Bisphenol A exposure‐induced metabolic abnormalities in male offspring

“…The alteration of hypothalamic neuroendocrine circuits has been implicated in endocrine‐disrupting chemical‐induced metabolic abnormalities 37 . Although the alteration in hypothalamic circuits was not addressed in the current study, the abnormal expression and action of leptin in diet‐induced obesity were improved by MLB supplementation 38 . Secondary to the central coordination, peripheral adipose tissues are a dominant obesogenic organ for excess fat deposition 39 .…”