Antiobesity actions of Embelia ribes

Embelia ribes has been used as a folk medicine whole world. An aqueous extract of Embelia ribes have visceral fat accumulation and improved insulin resistance in rat model with HFD induced obesity may possibly be through down regulation of leptin, TNF-α, SREBP1γ, and PPARγ2 gene expression. The leptin might contribute to hepatic steatosis by promoting insulin resistance and also by altering insulin signaling in hepatocytes, which consequently promote increased intracellular fatty acid. Hence, drug treatment to rats with HFD prevents increase of these levels due to decrease of the body fat content. Therefore we investigated the anti-obesity effects of the aqueous extract of Embelia ribes by feeding a high-fat diet to rats for 42 weeks. Body weights at 2-6 weeks and parametrial adipose tissue weights were significantly lower in rat fed the high-fat diet containing aqueous extract of Embelia ribes than in the controls fed the high-fat diet. Our data suggest that the antiobesity effects of aqueous extract of Embelia ribes in rat fed a high-fat diet may be through down regulation of leptin, TNF-α, SREBP1γ, and PPARγ2 gene expression.