Dietary Curcumin Significantly Improves Obesity-Associated Inflammation and Diabetes in Mouse Models of Diabesity

TLDR

Obesity and type 2 diabetes share significant inflammatory components that drive their pathophysiology, and related compounds merit further study as adjunctive therapies. The authors tested the hypothesis that curcumin would ameliorate diabetes and inflammation in murine models of insulin‑resistant obesity. They administered a dietary curcumin admixture to high‑fat diet‑induced obese and leptin‑deficient ob/ob male C57BL/6J mice. Curcumin improved glucose tolerance and HbA1c, reduced adipose macrophage infiltration, increased adiponectin, and lowered hepatic NF‑κB activity and inflammation, thereby reversing many obesity‑associated metabolic and inflammatory derangements.

Abstract

Obesity is a major risk factor for the development of type 2 diabetes, and both conditions are now recognized to possess significant inflammatory components underlying their pathophysiologies. We tested the hypothesis that the plant polyphenolic compound curcumin, which is known to exert potent antiinflammatory and antioxidant effects, would ameliorate diabetes and inflammation in murine models of insulin-resistant obesity. We found that dietary curcumin admixture ameliorated diabetes in high-fat diet-induced obese and leptin-deficient ob/ob male C57BL/6J mice as determined by glucose and insulin tolerance testing and hemoglobin A1c percentages. Curcumin treatment also significantly reduced macrophage infiltration of white adipose tissue, increased adipose tissue adiponectin production, and decreased hepatic nuclear factor-κB activity, hepatomegaly, and markers of hepatic inflammation. We therefore conclude that orally ingested curcumin reverses many of the inflammatory and metabolic derangements associated with obesity and improves glycemic control in mouse models of type 2 diabetes. This or related compounds warrant further investigation as novel adjunctive therapies for type 2 diabetes in man.