Euphorbia kansui Attenuates Insulin Resistance in Obese Human Subjects and High-Fat Diet-Induced Obese Mice

• Published in: Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine Vol. 2017; no. 2017; pp. 1 - 9
• Main Authors: Kim, Mia, Seol, Mi Hyeon, Na, Hyun-Young, Lee, Seung-Wook, Lee, Byung-Cheol
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cairo, Egypt Hindawi Publishing Corporation 01.01.2017; Hindawi; John Wiley & Sons, Inc
• Subjects: Adipose tissue; Analysis; Biological response modifiers; Blood glucose; Blood sugar; Body fat; Body mass index; Body weight; Body weight loss; Diabetes; Diet; Disease; Drug dosages; Euphorbia; Fasting; Fatty liver; Glucose tolerance; Glucose tolerance tests; High fat diet; Hospitals; Human subjects; Hypertension; Inflammation; Insulin; Insulin resistance; Interferon; Interleukin 6; Laboratory testing; Liver diseases; Macrophages; Medical research; Medicine; Medicine, Experimental; Metabolic syndrome; Metastases; Obesity; Pharmaceuticals; Powder; Rodents; Therapeutic applications; Tumor necrosis factor; Tumor necrosis factor-TNF; Type 2 diabetes; Weight control; South Korea
• ISSN: 1741-427X; 1741-4288
• DOI: 10.1155/2017/9058956

Background. Obesity is a main cause of insulin resistance (IR), metabolic syndrome, and fatty liver diseases. This study evaluated Euphorbia kansui radix (Euphorbia) as a potential treatment option for obesity and obesity-induced IR in obese human and high-fat diet- (HFD-) induced obese mice. Methods. In the human study, we analyzed the body weight change of 14 patients who took a single dose of 6 g of Euphorbia powder. In the animal study, male mice were divided into three groups: normal chow, HFD, and Euphorbia (high-fat diet and 100 mg/Kg Euphorbia once per week). Body weight, epididymal fat pad weight, fasting blood glucose, fasting insulin, HOMA-IR, and oral glucose tolerance test were measured. Also, macrophage infiltration and expression of CD68, tumor necrosis factor- (TNF-) α, interferon- (IFN-) γ, and interleukin- (IL-) 6 genes in the liver and adipose tissue were analyzed. Results. The human study showed that Euphorbia has a potential effect on body weight loss. In the in vivo study, body weight, epididymal fat weight, glucose level, IR, expression of CD68, TNF-α, IFN-r, and IL-6 genes, and macrophages in liver and adipose tissue were significantly reduced by Euphorbia. Conclusions. These results suggest that Euphorbia attenuates obesity and insulin resistance via anti-inflammatory effects.