Polyacetylene From Dendropanax morbifera Alleviates Diet-Induced Obesity and Hepatic Steatosis by Activating AMPK Signaling Pathway

Abstract

The extract tea of <i>Dendropanax morbifera</i> is popular beverages in Korea, and their preventive and therapeutic roles in metabolic disorders have been reported. However, the molecular mechanism has not been studied despite the known efficacy of <i>D. morbifera</i>. Eleven fractions (fr.1-fr.11) were divided by MPLC to find the active compound. Among them, Fr.5 was superior to others in that the inhibitory efficacy of <i>de novo</i> triglyceride (TG) biosynthesis. NMR analysis revealed that Fr.5 is composed 98% or more (9<i>Z</i>,16<i>S</i>)-16-hydroxy-9,17-octadecadiene-12,14-diynoic acid (HOD). Treatment of HOD diminished oleic acid (OA)-induced TG accumulation in HepG2 hepatocytes and differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes by activating LKB1/AMPK. In addition, we determined the effect of the oral administration of the extract of <i>D. morbifera</i> on obesity and hepatic steatosis in high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese mice. This study proved that <i>D. morbifera</i> containing HOD, the active substance, can show preventive or therapeutic efficacy on obesity and hepatic steatosis through the targeting LKB1/AMPK axis.