Luteolin attenuates hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance through the interplay between the liver and adipose tissue in mice with diet-induced obesity.

Abstract

The flavonoid luteolin has various pharmacological activities. However, few studies exist on the in vivo mechanism underlying the actions of luteolin in hepatic steatosis and obesity. The aim of the current study was to elucidate the action of luteolin on obesity and its comorbidity by analyzing its transcriptional and metabolic responses, in particular the luteolin-mediated cross-talk between liver and adipose tissue in diet-induced obese mice. C57BL/6J mice were fed a normal, high-fat, and high-fat + 0.005% (weight for weight) luteolin diet for 16 weeks. In high fat-fed mice, luteolin improved hepatic steatosis by suppressing hepatic lipogenesis and lipid absorption. In adipose tissue, luteolin increased PPARγ protein expression to attenuate hepatic lipotoxicity, which may be linked to the improvement in circulating fatty acid (FA) levels by enhancing FA uptake genes and lipogenic genes and proteins in adipose tissue. Interestingly, luteolin also upregulated the expression of genes controlling lipolysis and the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle prior to lipid droplet formation, thereby reducing adiposity. Moreover, luteolin improved hepatic insulin sensitivity by suppressing SREBP1 expression that modulates Irs2 expression through its negative feedback and gluconeogenesis. Luteolin ameliorates the deleterious effects of diet-induced obesity and its comorbidity via the interplay between liver and adipose tissue.

• Authors: Eun-Young Kwon, Un Ju Jung, Taesun Park, Jong Won Yun, Myung-Sook Choi
• Journal: Diabetes (Diabetes) Vol. 64 Issue 5 Pg. 1658-69 (May 2015) ISSN: 1939-327X [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 25524918 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)
• Copyright: © 2015 by the American Diabetes Association. Readers may use this article as long as the work is properly cited, the use is educational and not for profit, and the work is not altered.

Chemical References

• Dietary Fats
• Lipids
• Luteolin

Topics

• Adipose Tissue (drug effects, physiology)
• Adipose Tissue, White (anatomy & histology, drug effects)
• Animals
• Dietary Fats (adverse effects)
• Fatty Liver (prevention & control)
• Feces (chemistry)
• Insulin Resistance (physiology)
• Lipid Metabolism
• Lipids (blood, chemistry)
• Liver (anatomy & histology, drug effects, physiology)
• Luteolin (pharmacology)
• Male
• Mice
• Mice, Inbred C57BL
• Obesity (etiology, metabolism)
• Organ Size (drug effects)