Protective Effects of Tamarillo (Cyphomandra betacea) Extract against High Fat Diet Induced Obesity in Sprague-Dawley Rats

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the protective effect ofCyphomandra betaceain adult male Sprague-Dawley rats fed with high fat diet. Rats were fed on either normal chow or high fat diet for 10 weeks for obesity induction phase and subsequently receivedC. betaceaextract at low dose (150 mg kg−1), medium dose (200 mg kg−1), or high dose (300 mg kg−1) or placebo via oral gavages for another 7 weeks for treatment phase. Treatment of obese rats withC. betaceaextracts led to a significant decrease in total cholesterol and significant increase in HDL-C (p<0.05). Also there was a trend of positive reduction in blood glucose, triglyceride, and LDL-C with positive reduction of body weight detected in medium and high dosage ofC. betaceaextract. Interestingly,C. betaceatreated rats showed positive improvement of superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity along with a significant increase of total antioxidant status (TAS) (p<0.05). Further, rats treated withC. betaceashow significantly lower in TNF-αand IL-6 activities (p<0.05). This study demonstrates the potential use ofCyphomandra betaceaextract for weight maintenance and complimentary therapy to suppress some obesity complication signs.