Effect of Eclipta prostrata on lipid metabolism in hyperlipidemic animals
Graphical abstract
Introduction
Aging is a progressive decline in the biochemical and physiological functions of various organs in an individual. The reasons for this decline remain unclear, but it has been proposed that lipid metabolism disorders (Puca et al., 2008) and increased oxidative stress (Ramesh et al., 2012) play a crucial role in aging.
Hyperlipidemia is a metabolic disorder that is specifically characterized by increased concentrations of total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), very low density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C) and triglycerides (TG), with a concomitant decrease in the concentration of high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in the blood circulation (Gao et al., 2013). High concentrations of serum lipids are also a key risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, including atherosclerosis, myocardial infarction, stroke and cerebrovascular diseases (Watts and Karpe, 2011), which are harmful to the elderly. Therefore, reducing blood lipids is an important strategy for preventing the occurrence and progression of these diseases.
Increased daily intake of a high-fat diet (HFD) is an important contributor to the development of human hyperlipidemia (Sharma et al., 2008). Furthermore, HFD causes oxidative stress in mammals (Ibrahim et al., 1997), which aggravates hyperlipidemia by damaging the structural and functional integrity of a cell (Chan et al., 2006). This is known as the two-hit theory (Huang et al., 2007).
Eclipta prostrata (Linn.) Linn. has traditionally been used as a Chinese food additive and herbal medicine (Jian and Taiyan, 1957) since it was first recorded in 659 (Jing, 1981). It has many pharmacological activities, such as immune system regulation (Jayathirtha and Mishra, 2004) and inflammation promotion (Sawant et al., 2004), and it also prevents liver damage (Ma-Ma et al., 1978), inhibits HIV-1 (Tewtrakul et al., 2007) and has antioxidant activity in vitro (Cai et al., 2004). However, to the best of our knowledge, there are no reports of its antioxidant effects in vivo. E. prostrata can regulate blood lipids in rats (Kim et al, 2008); however, the exact mechanism underlying its hypolipidemic effects is not well understood. Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate the effect of E. prostrata on the oxidative stress and lipid profile in vivo and to elucidate the underlying mechanism of its hypolipidemic effect.
Additionally, the selection of an ideal hyperlipidemic animal model is the key to studying lipid metabolism. Compared to rats and mice, hamsters are the best animal model for studying lipid metabolism because cholesterol metabolism in hamsters is similar to that in humans (Spady et al., 1986). However, hamsters have not been previously used to study the lipid-reducing mechanism of E. prostrata. To further investigate the hypolipidemic effect of E. prostrata and its possible mechanism of action, we used a hamster model of HFD-induced hyperlipidemia.
Section snippets
Materials
Whole Eclipta plants were procured from Zhangshu Co., Ltd. (Jiangxi Province, China) in March 2012 and were authenticated by Dr. Qiu (Medical College, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China), who specializes in medical plants. A voucher, designated as Co-EP-11, was deposited in the Pharmacology Laboratory at the Medical College, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China.
Fenofibrate was purchased from Sigma-Aldrich (St. Louis, MO, USA), and Xuezhikang was purchased from Beijing Wbl Peking University Biotech
Triterpene, flavonoid and polyphenol contents
Examination of the total triterpene, flavonoid and polyphenol contents of the Eclipta extracts showed that EPF3 contained more triterpenes and polyphenols at 27.06 and 51.58 mg/g of the dry extract mass, respectively, compared to the other extracts (Table 2).
Quantitative determination of wedelolactone in EP and EPF3
Because wedelolactone is the characteristic chemical constituent of E. prostrata, it was evaluated both in EP and EPF3. HPLC analysis of the wedelolactone standard showed a single peak at 350 nm with a retention time of approximately 11 min (
Discussion
Hyperlipidemia is a well-known risk factor for atherosclerosis (Bonetti et al., 2003), which, if there are no other causes, such as infection or malignant tumors arise, is the progressive change of the cardiovascular system (L. Robert, 1999). The development of hyperlipidemia is related to a high-fat diet and oxidative stress (Huang et al., 2007, Ibrahim et al., 1997).
E. prostrata is an herbal medicine that is widely consumed in southern China. E. prostrata regulates blood lipids in rats (Kim
Conflict of interest statement
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank Professor Qiuyan from the Medical College of Xiamen University for his help. This study was supported by the Research Fund of Strait (Xiamen) Technology Platform in Traditional Chinese Medicine (3502Z20100006).
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These authors contributed equally to this work.