Antihyperlipidemic Effects of Rhapontin and Rhapontigenin from Rheum undulatum in Rats Fed a High-Cholesterol Diet

Sung Pil Jo, Jeong Keun Kim, Young Hee Lim

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

22 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Rhapontin was purified from a methanol extract from the roots of Rheum undulatum, and rhapontigenin was produced by an enzymatic transformation of rhapontin. Rats were fed a high-cholesterol diet to induce hyperlipidemia, followed by oral treatment with rhapontin or rhapontigenin (1-5mg/kg/day). Rhapontin and rhapontigenin treatment resulted in a significant (p<0.05) dose-dependent decrease in the serum lipid level, while the high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level increased slightly compared with the experimental control. Furthermore, rhapontin and rhapontigenin treatment improved the pathological characteristics of the degenerating fatty liver in high-cholesterol diet-induced hyperlipidemic rats dose-dependently. Aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase levels in rhapontin- and rhapontigenin-treated hyperlipidemic rats were not significantly different from those in the control. These results indicate that rhapontin and rhapontigenin can be used as potent antihyperlipidemic agents.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1067-1071
Number of pages5
JournalPlanta Medica
Volume80
Issue number13
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2014 Aug 1

Keywords

  • antihyperlipidemic effect
  • high-cholesterol diet
  • methoxylated stilbene
  • Polygonaceae
  • Rheum undulatum

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Drug Discovery
  • Pharmacology
  • Pharmaceutical Science
  • Analytical Chemistry
  • Organic Chemistry
  • Molecular Medicine
  • Complementary and alternative medicine
  • Medicine(all)

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