Results "Anti-obesity effects of individual or combination treatment with Spirulina platensis and green coffee bean aqueous extracts in high-fat diet-induced obese rats"

Background: Obesity, a chronic disease, is associated with serious health risks, including premature mortality. This study aimed to investigate the anti-obesity effects of individual or combination treatment with Spirulina platensis and green coffee bean aqueous extracts in high-fat diet-induced (HFD) obese rats.

Methods: Rats were fed on HFD to induce obesity. Corn oil in the HFD accounted for 50.98 % of the calories. Fifty rats were divided into the following five groups (10 rats/group): control, HFD, HFD-Spirulina, HFD-coffee, HFD-Spirulina and coffee co-treatment groups. The serum levels of lipid, leptin, and insulin, as well as the hepatic mRNA levels of fatty acid synthase (FAS), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1 alpha (PGC-1α), and peroxisome proliferator-activated alpha receptor (PPARα) were estimated.

Results: The Spirulina and/or green coffee bean aqueous extracts decreased the final bodyweight and liver weight, and the serum levels of alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and alkaline phosphatase. Additionally, the extracts decreased the serum levels of total cholesterol, triacylglycerol, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, leptin, and glucose, and enhanced the serum insulin level. Furthermore, the extracts enhanced the PGC-1α and PPARα mRNA levels and decreased the FAS mRNA levels.

Conclusion: The individual or combination treatment with Spirulina and green coffee bean extracts decreased obesity-induced hyperlipidemia. Thus, Spirulina platensis and green coffee can be potentially used to treat obesity.