Effect of Citrus Limonoids on Hepatic Gene Expression Involved in Lipid Metabolism in Rats

Abstract

　This study investigated the effect of limonin and nomilin, citrus limonoids, on lipid metabolism in rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats fed a high-fat high-cholesterol diet were orally given 50 mg/kg BW/ day limonin or nomilin for 5 weeks. No significant changes in body, liver, and visceral fat weight, plasma and liver lipid profile were observed except LDL-Chol increase in nomilin group. Nomilin reduced hepatic mRNA expression of Chrebp, Pparα, Fxr, Lxrα significantly and Srebf1c, Abca1 marginally significantly. The gene expression related to lipogenesis (Acaca, Fasn, Scd1, Me1), β-oxidation (Cpt1a), cholesterol metabolism (Hmgcr, Ldlr, Srebf2, Acat2), bile acid metabolism (Shp, Lrh-1, Hnf4a, Cyp7a1, Cyp27a1), triglyceride synthesis (Dgat1, Dgat2), lipoprotein assembly (Mttp) lipid transport (Abcg5, Abcg8, Abcb11, Cd36) were not altered significantly. Limonin did not induce significant changes in hepatic gene expression analyzed in this study.