Lactobacillus plantarum K8-based paraprobiotics suppress lipid accumulation during adipogenesis by the regulation of JAK/STAT and AMPK signaling pathways

Paraprobiotics are non-viable cells or cell fractions that have beneficial effects on the host; they may help in overcoming the limitations of probiotics and expanding their benefits. Here, we aimed to investigate their effects on lipid accumulation and the underlying mechanisms in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. A novel paraprobiotic, LAB-P, prepared from the live cells of Lactobacillus plantarum K8, effectively inhibited lipid accumulation during adipogenesis via downregulation of the key activators PPARγ and C/EBPα. LAB-P-mediated reduction of lipid accumulation regulated early adipogenic factors, including downregulation of C/EBPβ, KLF4, KLF5, KROX20, and C/EBPδ, and upregulation of DLK1. Western blotting analysis revealed that these inhibitory effects of LAB-P on adipogenesis were associated with regulating JAK-STAT and AMPKα signaling pathways. This study highlights the potential of paraprobiotics as a functional food material to control obesity or obesity-related diseases, and provides valuable groundwork for utilizing LAB-P as a functional ingredient to alleviate obesity or lipid accumulation.