Hypolipidemic, antiobesity and cardioprotective effects of sardinelle meat flour and its hydrolysates in high-fat and fructose diet fed Wistar rats

•Fermented sardinelle protein hydrolysates (FSPHs) were prepared by two proteolytic bacteria.•Hypercaloric diet (HCD) induced obesity and hyperlipidemia.•FSPHs were found to attenuate obesity and hyperlipidemia in HCD-fed rats.•FSPHs exhibited a potent cardioprotective effect.•FSPHs could be used as ingredients to formulate functional foods.

AimsThe present study aims to evaluate the antiobesity, hypolipidemic and cardioprotective effects of fermented sardinelle (Sardinella aurita) protein hydrolysates (FSPHs) produced with two proteolytic bacteria, Bacillus subtilis A26 (FSPH-A26) and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens An6 (FSPH-An6).Main methodsWistar rats were fed during 10 weeks a standard laboratory diet, a high caloric diet (HCD) and a HCD coupled with the oral administration of sardinelle meat flour (SMF) or FSPHs.Key findingsHCD caused hyperlipidemia and increased body weight (BW). The daily oral administration of FSPHs or SMF reduced the total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) serum levels, and increased the level of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c). Nevertheless, FSPHs were found to be more efficient than SMF. FSPHs also lowered hepatic TC and TG content and decreased the pancreatic lipase activity. Further, the administration of FSPHs or SMF decreased the BW gain, the food intake and the relative epididymal adipose tissue weight. FSPHs exhibited a potent cardioprotective effect against heart attack, which was demonstrated by returning atherogenic indexes to their normal levels and the conservation of standard histological structure of the heart and aorta.SignificanceThe overall results indicate that FSPHs contained bioactive peptides which significantly attenuated hyperlipidemia, and might reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in rats fed HCD.