Laboratory of Experimental Animals, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (KRIBB), Yuseonggu,Daejeon 305-806, Korea.
Biol Pharm Bull. 2010;33(3):450-4. doi: 10.1248/bpb.33.450.
Platycodon grandiflorum (PG) (Korean name, Doraji; Chinese name, Jiegeng; and Japanese name, Kikyo) is a perennial plant in the Campanulaceae family that contains triterpenoid saponins, carbohydrates, and fibers. This study was carried out to investigate effects of root of PG on fatty liver inhibition in high fat diet (HFD)-fed C57BL/6 mice. C57BL/6 mice were divided into control, total extract of PG (T-PG, 500 mg/kg) and saponin fraction (S-PG, 50 mg/kg)-treated groups. Significant decreases in body weight, associated with fat mass reduction, were observed in PG-treated groups (p<0.05). Hepatic lipid content and score index calculated from morphometric observations on fatty liver were significantly decreased in the PG-treated groups (p<0.05). Moreover, activities of fatty acid synthase (FAS) and carnitine palmitoyl-transferase (CPT) were significantly suppressed and increased as compared with the control group, respectively (p<0.05). mRNA expressions of the sterol regulatory element binding protein (SREBP1c) and stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD1) gene were suppressed in the T-PG and S-PG groups (p<0.05). From these findings, we speculate that fatty liver inhibition effects of PG extract and its saponins appear to be conferred by hepatic lipogenesis and acceleration of energy expenditure, along with modulation of liver FAS and CPT activities in HFD-fed C57BL/6 mice.
党参（PG）（韩国名，道拉吉；中文名，桔梗；日文名，桔梗）是桔梗科的多年生植物，含有三萜皂苷、碳水化合物和纤维。本研究旨在探讨 PG 根对高脂饮食（HFD）喂养 C57BL/6 小鼠脂肪肝抑制的作用。将 C57BL/6 小鼠分为对照组、PG 总提取物（T-PG，500mg/kg）和皂苷（S-PG，50mg/kg）处理组。PG 处理组体重和脂肪质量显著下降（p<0.05）。PG 处理组肝脂质含量和脂肪肝形态计量观察计算的评分指数显著降低（p<0.05）。此外，脂肪酸合成酶（FAS）和肉碱棕榈酰转移酶（CPT）的活性与对照组相比分别显著抑制和增加（p<0.05）。PG 总提取物和皂苷处理组固醇调节元件结合蛋白 1c（SREBP1c）和硬脂酰辅酶 A 去饱和酶（SCD1）基因的 mRNA 表达受到抑制（p<0.05）。从这些结果可以推测，PG 提取物及其皂苷对 HFD 喂养 C57BL/6 小鼠的脂肪肝抑制作用可能是通过肝脏脂肪生成和加速能量消耗来实现的，同时调节肝脏 FAS 和 CPT 的活性。
