Green banana flour supplementation improves obesity-associated systemic inflammation and regulates gut microbiota profile in mice fed high-fat diets

Abstract

This study evaluated the effect of green banana flour (GBF) consumption on obesity-related conditions in mice fed high-fat diets. GBF was prepared using stage 1 green banana pulp, which was dehydrated and milled. Mice were fed a control diet (<i>n</i> = 20; 10% of energy from lipids) or a high-fat diet (<i>n</i> = 20; 50% of energy from lipids). After 10 weeks, mice were divided into 4 groups based on feed: standard chow (SC; <i>n</i> = 10), standard with 15% GBF (SB; <i>n</i> = 10), high-fat diet (HF; <i>n</i> = 10) and high-fat diet with 15% GBF (HFB; <i>n</i> = 10) for 4 weeks. HFB exhibited lower gains in body weight (-21%; <i>p</i> < 0.01) and in all fat pads (<i>p</i> < 0.01) compared with the HF group. SC, SB, and HFB showed smaller retroperitoneal white adipose tissue diameters (<i>p</i> < 0.001). SB and HFB-treated mice showed lower levels of leptin, IL-6, and TNF-α compared with the SC and HF groups (<i>p</i> < 0.01). In the GBF-fed groups, there was a reduction in the abundance of <i>Firmicutes</i> (SB: -22%; HFB: -23%) and an increase in <i>Bacteroidetes</i> (SB: +25%; HFB: +29%) compared with their counterparts. We demonstrated that GBF consumption attenuated inflammation and improved metabolic status, adipose tissue remodeling, and the gut microbiota profile of obese mice. <b>Novelty:</b> Green banana flour (GBF) consumption, rich in resistant starch, regulates body weight in mice fed high-fat diets. GBF consumption improves fat pad distribution in mice fed high-fat diets. GBF improves obesity-associated systemic inflammation and regulates gut microbiota profile in mice fed high-fat diets.