Dietary intervention with AHP, a functional formula diet, improves both serum and hepatic lipids profile in dyslipidemia mice

J Food Sci. 2009 Aug;74(6):H189-95. doi: 10.1111/j.1750-3841.2009.01241.x.

Abstract

Aurricularia aurricula, hawthorn (Crataegus pinnatifida), and Pueraria radix are well known for both traditional food and folk medicine. Each of the above 3 plants possesses a distinct pathway contributing to treat dyslipidemia. To develop a health-promoting diet against dyslipidemia, the polysaccharides from A. aurricula, polyphenol from hawthorn, and P. radix were combined to postulate as a functional formula diet (AHP) in the present study and its pharmaceutical effects and underlying mechanisms were elucidated in vivo. The dyslipidemia model associated with fatty liver was induced by cholesterol-enriched diet (CED) for up to 12 wk in male ICR mice. Mice were randomly divided into 5 groups, that is, regular diet (RD), CED, Xuezhikang treatment (positive control group, PG), low and high (150 or 450 mg/kg/d) of AHP treatment groups. Compared with the CED group, AHP groups maintained lipid profiles through lowering serum total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), inhibiting the accumulation of hepatic TC and triglyceride (TG). AHP could also improve both serum and hepatic biochemical activity profiles including antioxidant status, serum nitric oxide (NO), and hepatic 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutary CoA (HMG-CoA) reductase levels. Hepatic histopathological examinations showed markedly decreased fatty deposits in the liver of AHP-treated mice, illustrating the ability to reverse a condition of fatty liver. Our study indicated that this functional formula diet would be a potent alternative as a health-promoting diet, simultaneously targeting on the complexity and redundancy of dyslipidemia.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Analysis of Variance
  • Animals
  • Antioxidants / analysis
  • Basidiomycota / chemistry*
  • Body Weight
  • Cholates / administration & dosage
  • Cholesterol / administration & dosage
  • Cholesterol / analysis
  • Cholesterol / blood
  • Complex Mixtures / chemistry
  • Complex Mixtures / therapeutic use
  • Crataegus / chemistry
  • Drugs, Chinese Herbal / chemistry
  • Drugs, Chinese Herbal / therapeutic use*
  • Dyslipidemias / chemically induced
  • Dyslipidemias / drug therapy*
  • Fatty Liver / prevention & control
  • Hydroxymethylglutaryl CoA Reductases / metabolism
  • Lipids / analysis*
  • Lipids / blood*
  • Liver / chemistry*
  • Liver / metabolism
  • Liver / pathology
  • Male
  • Malondialdehyde / blood
  • Medicine, Traditional
  • Mice
  • Nitric Oxide / blood
  • Organ Size
  • Plant Extracts / chemistry
  • Plant Extracts / therapeutic use*
  • Pueraria
  • Random Allocation
  • Superoxide Dismutase / blood

Substances

  • Antioxidants
  • Cholates
  • Complex Mixtures
  • Drugs, Chinese Herbal
  • Lipids
  • Plant Extracts
  • plant extract, Puerariae Radix
  • xuezhikang
  • Nitric Oxide
  • Malondialdehyde
  • crataegus extract
  • Cholesterol
  • Hydroxymethylglutaryl CoA Reductases
  • Superoxide Dismutase