Instituto Superior de Investigaciones Biológicas (INSIBIO), CONICET-UNT, Chacabuco 461, T4000ILI, San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina.
Instituto de Biología "Dr. Francisco D. Barbieri" Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia- Universidad Nacional de Tucumán (UNT), San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina.
Plant Foods Hum Nutr. 2022 Dec;77(4):521-528. doi: 10.1007/s11130-022-01009-7. Epub 2022 Sep 1.
High-fructose diet is associated with an increased risk of dyslipidemia, metabolic syndrome, and the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) through chronic inflammation. The present study aimed to elucidate the potential benefit of daily consumption of Smallanthus sonchifolius (yacon) roots, rich in fructooligosaccharides (FOS), on the progression to liver fibrosis, in a rat model of NAFLD induced by a high-fructose diet. Male Wistar rats were fed a standard diet (CD, n = 6) or a standard diet plus 10% fructose solution (FD; n = 18). After 20 weeks, FD rats were randomly separated into the following groups (n = 6, each): FD; FD treated with yacon flour (340 mg FOS/body weight; FD + Y) and FD treated with fenofibrate (30 mg/kg body weight; FD + F), for 16 weeks. Daily intake of yacon flour significantly reduced body weight gain, plasma lipid levels, transaminase activities, and improved systemic insulin response in FD rats. In the liver, yacon treatment decreased fructose-induced steatosis and inflammation, and reduced total collagen deposition (64%). Also, yacon decreased TGF-β1 mRNA expression (78%), followed by decreased nuclear localization of p-Smad2/3 in liver tissue. Yacon significantly reduced the expression of α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), Col1α1, and Col3α1 mRNAs (85, 44, and 47%, respectively), inhibiting the activation of resident hepatic stellate cells (HSCs). These results suggested that yacon roots have the potential to ameliorate liver damage caused by long-term consumption of a high-fructose diet, being a promising nutritional strategy in NAFLD management.
高果糖饮食通过慢性炎症与血脂异常、代谢综合征和非酒精性脂肪性肝病（NAFLD）的发展相关。本研究旨在阐明富含果寡糖（FOS）的小果菊苣（yacon）根的日常摄入对果糖饮食诱导的 NAFLD 大鼠肝纤维化进展的潜在益处。雄性 Wistar 大鼠分别喂食标准饮食（CD，n=6）或标准饮食加 10%果糖溶液（FD；n=18）。20 周后，FD 大鼠被随机分为以下几组（n=6，每组）：FD；FD 用菊苣根粉（340mg FOS/体重；FD+Y）处理和 FD 用非诺贝特（30mg/kg 体重；FD+F）处理，共 16 周。每日摄入菊苣根粉可显著降低 FD 大鼠的体重增加、血浆脂质水平、转氨酶活性并改善全身胰岛素反应。在肝脏中，菊苣处理可减少果糖诱导的脂肪变性和炎症，并减少总胶原沉积（64%）。此外，菊苣还降低了 TGF-β1 mRNA 表达（78%），随后降低了肝组织中核定位的 p-Smad2/3。菊苣显著降低了α-平滑肌肌动蛋白（α-SMA）、Col1α1 和 Col3α1 mRNA 的表达（分别为 85%、44%和 47%），抑制了固有肝星状细胞（HSCs）的激活。这些结果表明，菊苣根具有改善长期摄入高果糖饮食引起的肝损伤的潜力，是 NAFLD 管理中一种有前途的营养策略。
