• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.556-562
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• 2013

We examined the anti-obesity effects of water-soluble polysaccharides (WSP-A) extracted from the seaweed Hijikia fusiforme (Tott in Korean). The extracted alginate-like polysaccharide (verified by FT-IR and HPAEC-PAD analysis) was examined in a lipase inhibition assay and animal experiments. WSP-A inhibited lipase up to 30%, with over 80% of the initial activity retained until the 1 hour reaction in vitro. There was a 30% loss in the rate of weight gain in rats fed a high-fat diet. WSP-A therefore seems to serve as a healthy weight loss agent by inhibiting lipases, thus preventing the absorption of fat in the body.