• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.40 no.9
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• pp.1215-1226
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• 2011

The objective of this study was to investigate the anti-obesity and lipid-lowering effects of extracts of persimmon leaf (PWE), buckwheat leaf (BWE), and chinese matrimony vine leaf (LWE) in rats fed a high-fat diet (HFD). Male Sprague-Dawley rats (n=40) were divided into four groups: HFD (35% fat, w/w), HFD (38.5% fat, w/w) supplemented with PWE (10%, w/w), BWE (10%, w/w), and LWE (10%, w/w) groups. The epididymal, perirenal, and interscapular white adipose tissue (WAT) weights as well as plasma leptin level were lowest in the LWE group. Supplementation with PWE and BWE also tended to lower the perirenal and retroperitonal WAT weights compared to the HFD control group, and there was a significant decrease in plasma leptin concentration. Furthermore, plasma triglyceride concentration, hepatic cholesterol content, and hepatic lipid droplet accumulation were significantly lower in the PWE, BWE, and LWE groups than in the HFD group. BWE supplementation markedly lowered plasma total cholesterol concentration, although there were no significant differences in plasma HDL-cholesterol concentration and ratio of HDL-cholesterol/total cholesterol among the groups. Hepatic HMG-CoA reductase activity was significantly higher in the PWE and LWE groups than in the HFD group, and hepatic ACAT was not changed by extract supplementation. However, supplementation with PWE, BWE, and LWE significantly increased fecal acidic sterol content in rats fed a HFD. These results suggest that supplementation with PWE, BWE, and LWE may be an effective anti-obesity strategy by lowering body fat weight and improving plasma and hepatic lipid profiles in HFD-fed rats.