Antihypercholesterolemic and Antioxidant Effects of Blumea balsamifera L. Leaf Extracts to Maintain Luteinizing Hormone Secretion in Rats Induced by High-Cholesterol Diets

BACKGROUND: The discovery of herbal ingredients for antihypercholesterolemic and to improve male reproductive function is very necessary due to high-cholesterol diet factors. Blumea balsamifera leaf extract (BBLE) is known to be able to increase the number and diameter of Leydig cells in rats given high-fat feed. This study was to conducted to determine the levels of total cholesterol, body weight, plasma malondialdehyde (MDA), Superoxide Dismutase (SOD), Luteinizing Hormone (LH) in high-cholesterol-fed male rats provided with BBLE.METHODS: This research utilized a randomized post-test only control group. Ethanol was used to extract the BBLE, which was then evaporated. For 21 days, 16 Wistar rats were given a high-cholesterol diet. To determine the effect of BBLE on the high-cholesterol diet, the samples were divided into two groups (control and BBLE group) on day 22. The treatments lasted 30 days. SOD, plasma MDA, LH, and total cholesterol were measured.RESULTS: The results showed that the SOD and LH parameters were significantly higher in the treatment of BBLE compared to the control group (p<0.05). The parameters of total cholesterol levels, bodyweight, and MDA of rats given BBLE were significantly lower than those of the control group (p<0.05).CONCLUSION: Our findings highlight that BBLE has antihypercholesterolemic and antioxidant effects. The BBLE also has potential to be used as a therapy to maintain male reproductive function because it has a positive effect on the hypothalamic-pituitary axis through increasing LH secretion.KEYWORDS: Malondialdehyde, Superoxide dismutase, Luteinizing hormone, Blumea balsamifera extract, High-cholesterol diet

Achillea Fragrantissima Ethanolic Extract Exerts Hypocholesterolemia and Hepatic Antioxidant Effects in High Fat-Cholesterol Diet: An Experimental Study

Background: Hypercholesterolemia and oxidative stress consider the main causes for atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases, that are one of the major non-communicable diseases responsible for more than a third of deaths in Saudi Arabia. Cholesterol-lowering medications as Atorvastatin® (ATOR) are linked to a variety of side effects. Achillea fragarntissima (AF) is a valuable medicinal plant in Saudi Arabia with potent antioxidant activity. Aim: The current study was performed to determine the efficacy of AF in the treatment of hypercholesterolemia through the antioxidant metabolic pathway. Methodology: Dried aerial parts of AF were extracted by ethanol (70%). Induction of hypercholesterolemia in rats was induced through feeding a high fat-cholesterol diet (HFCD) for 8 weeks. Rats were assigned to two main groups; control group (Cont, n=10) rats fed a standard diet, and hypercholesterolemic group (HFCD) (n=40) rats fed HFCD. The HFCD group was further assigned after measured lipid profile to confirm the induction of hypercholesterolemia to HFCD; HFCD+AF (hypercholesterolemic rats treated orally with 500 mg/kg AF); HFCD+ ATOR (hypercholesterolemic rats treated orally with 20 mg/kg ATOR, as a reference drug); and HFCD+AF+ATOR (hypercholesterolemic rats treated orally with AF+ ATOR). Different treatments were ingested to rats for 4 weeks. Results: The results revealed that the HFCD group showed significant hyperlipidemia (elevation of serum TC, TG, LDL-C, and VLDL-C levels concurrent with a reduction in serum HDL-C level); significant disturbance in liver functions (elevation in serum ALT, AST, and ALP enzymes activities); and significant oxidative stress (elevation in hepatic MDA level with a reduction in hepatic SOD activity) compared with the Cont group. Besides, hepatic central vein section showed deposition of large lipid within hepatocytes and abundant focal cell necrosis. Oral treatment with AF, ATOR, and the mixture of the drug and AF produced significant hypocholesterolemia, antioxidant, and improved liver function enzymes, with normalized hepatic central vein tissue compared with the HFCD group. The mixture of AF+ATOR had a superior effect than either treatment alone. Conclusion: In hypercholesterolemic rats, AF may be used to prevent atherosclerosis through improving lipid profile levels, protecting against hepatic oxidative stress, and ameliorating hepatic functions. Thus highlighting its valuable effects in the treatment of atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. Keywords: Achillea fragarntissima, lipid profile, hepatic oxidative stress, hepatic function, hypercholesterolemia.

Mangrove (Rhizophora sp) Fruit Extract Inhibits Tumor Growth Factor (TGF)-β1 Expression in High Cholesterol Diet-Fed Rats

Background: Atherosclerosis is a major finding in cardiovascular disease. One of the pro-fibrotic cytokines that play an important role in the atherosclerosis process is Tumor Growth Factor (TGF)-β1, where the presence of high TGF-β1 secretion due to hypercholesterolemia will trigger excessive collagen matrix formation. Objective: To analyze Rhizophora sp fruit extract effect on TGF-β1 expression in high cholesterol diet-fed rats. Material and Methods: Eighteen 10-week-old rats weighing 150-200 g were used in this study. These animals were grouped into 3 groups, each consisting of 6 rats. Group A (normal control) is a group of rats that received a normal diet. Group B (atherogenic control) received a diet that induces atherosclerosis (atherogenic diet). This diet contains 2% cholesterol, 5% goat fat, 0.2% cholic acid and standard diet up to 100%. Atherogenic diet was given for 3 days, and on the first day this group also received vitamin D3 700,000 IU/kg. Group C (treated), apart from receiving an atherogenic diet, was also given Rhizophora sp fruit extract 500 mg/kg body weight. The Rhizophora sp fruit extract effect on TGF-β1 expression was evaluated by immunohistochemical procedure. The area of ​​the expression is calculated using the ImageJ. Results: The results of this study indicate that the expression of TGF-β1 is higher in the group receiving the atherogenic diet than the normal control group (17.3 vs. 8.9; P=0.000). Rhizophora sp fruit extract reduced this expression remarkably (17.3 vs. 11.4; P=0.001). Conclusion: Rhizophora sp fruit extract inhibits the the expression of TGF-β1 in high cholesterol diet-fed rats.

Mutants of the white ABCG Transporter in Drosophila melanogaster Have Deficient Olfactory Learning and Cholesterol Homeostasis

Drosophila’s white gene encodes an ATP-binding cassette G-subfamily (ABCG) half-transporter. White is closely related to mammalian ABCG family members that function in cholesterol efflux. Mutants of white have several behavioral phenotypes that are independent of visual defects. This study characterizes a novel defect of white mutants in the acquisition of olfactory memory using the aversive olfactory conditioning paradigm. The w1118 mutants learned slower than wildtype controls, yet with additional training, they reached wildtype levels of performance. The w1118 learning phenotype is also found in the wapricot and wcoral alleles, is dominant, and is rescued by genomic white and mini-white transgenes. Reducing dietary cholesterol strongly impaired olfactory learning for wildtype controls, while w1118 mutants were resistant to this deficit. The w1118 mutants displayed higher levels of cholesterol and cholesterol esters than wildtype under this low-cholesterol diet. Increasing levels of serotonin, dopamine, or both in the white mutants significantly improved w1118 learning. However, serotonin levels were not lower in the heads of the w1118 mutants than in wildtype controls. There were also no significant differences found in synapse numbers within the w1118 brain. We propose that the w1118 learning defect may be due to inefficient biogenic amine signaling brought about by altered cholesterol homeostasis.

Long noncoding RNAs associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in a high cholesterol diet adult zebrafish model

The mechanism of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has not been completely revealed. In this study, we investigated the association of liver histological changes and long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) in the NAFLD zebrafish model. Forty zebrafish were fed a high-cholesterol diet (1.5 g per day) for 8 weeks. We measured fatty liver changes in the zebrafish liver using oil red O staining and divided them into two groups based on high and low scores. We pooled each group of zebrafish livers and identified lncRNAs, miRNAs, and mRNAs using Next-generation sequencing. Human homologs of lncRNAs were identified using ZFLNC, Ensembl, and NONCODE. We found several significant genes, including 32 lncRNAs, 5 miRNA genes, and 8 protein-coding genes, that were associated with liver metabolism and NAFLD-related functions in zebrafish. In particular, eight conserved human homologs of lncRNAs were found. We discovered the human homologs of eight lncRNA candidates from fatty liver zebrafish for the first time. The spectrum of biological mechanisms by which lncRNAs mediate their functional roles in NAFLD in a high cholesterol diet adult zebrafish model remains to be uncovered.

Consumption of Non-Nutritive Sweetener, Acesulfame Potassium Exacerbates Atherosclerosis through Dysregulation of Lipid Metabolism in ApoE−/− Mice

Obesity is associated with the risk of cardiovascular disease, and non-nutritive sweetener, such as acesulfame potassium (AceK) has been used to combat obesity. However, the effects of AceK on cardiovascular disease are still unclear. In this study, high cholesterol diet (HCD)-fed ApoE−/− mice had dysregulated plasma lipid profile, and developed atherosclerosis, determined by atherosclerotic plaque in the aorta. Supplement of AceK in HCD worsened the dyslipidemia and increased atherosclerotic plaque, as compared with HCD-fed ApoE−/− mice. Since treatment of AceK in RAW264.7 macrophages showed no significant effects on inflammatory cytokine expressions, we then investigated the impacts of AceK on lipid metabolism. We found that AceK consumption enhanced hepatic lipogenesis and decreased β-oxidation in ApoE−/− mice. In addition, AceK directly increased lipogenesis and decreased β-oxidation in HepG2 cells. Taken together, a concurrent consumption of AceK exacerbated HCD-induced dyslipidemia and atherosclerotic lesion in ApoE−/− mice, and AceK might increase the risk of atherosclerosis under HCD.

Albino mice with the point mutation at the tyrosinase locus show high cholesterol diet-induced NASH susceptibility

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) constitutes a metabolic disorder with high worldwide prevalence and increasing incidence. The inflammatory progressive state, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), leads to liver fibrosis and carcinogenesis. Here, we evaluated whether tyrosinase mutation underlies NASH pathophysiology. Tyrosinase point-mutated B6 (Cg)-Tyrc-2J/J mice (B6 albino) and C57BL/6J black mice (B6 black) were fed with high cholesterol diet (HCD) for 10 weeks. Normal diet-fed mice served as controls. HCD-fed B6 albino exhibited high NASH susceptibility compared to B6 black, a phenotype not previously reported. Liver injury occurred in approximately 50% of B6 albino from one post HCD feeding, with elevated serum alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase levels. NASH was induced following 2 weeks in severe-phenotypic B6 albino (sB6), but B6 black exhibited no symptoms, even after 10 weeks. HCD-fed sB6 albino showed significantly higher mortality rate. Histological analysis of the liver revealed significant inflammatory cell and lipid infiltration and severe fibrosis. Serum lipoprotein analysis revealed significantly higher chylomicron and very low-density lipoprotein levels in sB6 albino. Moreover, significantly higher small intestinal lipid absorption and lower fecal lipid excretion occurred together with elevated intestinal NPC1L1 expression. As the tyrosinase point mutation represents the only genetic difference between B6 albino and B6 black, our work will facilitate the identification of susceptible genetic factors for NASH development and expand the understanding of NASH pathophysiology.