Mice were fed normal diet (normal group) or lipodystrophy model diets (control group and leptin group) for 4 weeks and were infused intrapeneally 0 or 5 g of leptin per day for the final week of the 4-week feeding period

<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "Effect of leptin infusion on insulin sensitivity and lipid metabolism in diet-induced lipodystrophy model mice"</p><p>http://www.lipidworld.com/content/7/1/8</p><p>Lipids in Health and Disease 2008;7():8-8.</p><p>Published online 18 Mar 2008</p><p>PMCID:PMC2278145.</p><p></p

Mice were fed normal or lipodystrophy model diets for 4 weeks and were infused intrapeneally 0 or 5 g of leptin per day f for the final week of the 4-week feeding period

Values are expressed as mean ± SE. Different letters show significant differences at < 0.05. AST, alanine aminotransferase.<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "Effect of leptin infusion on insulin sensitivity and lipid metabolism in diet-induced lipodystrophy model mice"</p><p>http://www.lipidworld.com/content/7/1/8</p><p>Lipids in Health and Disease 2008;7():8-8.</p><p>Published online 18 Mar 2008</p><p>PMCID:PMC2278145.</p><p></p

Mice were fed normal or lipodystrophy model diets for 4 weeks and were infused intrapeneally 0 or 5 g of leptin per day for the final week of the 4-week feeding period

Blood glucose was measured at the indicated time points. Values are expressed as mean ± SE. Means at a time without a common letter differ at < 0.05.<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "Effect of leptin infusion on insulin sensitivity and lipid metabolism in diet-induced lipodystrophy model mice"</p><p>http://www.lipidworld.com/content/7/1/8</p><p>Lipids in Health and Disease 2008;7():8-8.</p><p>Published online 18 Mar 2008</p><p>PMCID:PMC2278145.</p><p></p

Inhibitory Effects of the Leaves of Loquat (Eriobotrya japonica) on Bone Mineral Density Loss in Ovariectomized Mice and Osteoclast Differentiation

The loquat, Eriobotrya japonica Lindl. (Rosaceae), is a small tree native to Japan and China that is widely cultivated for its succulent fruit. Its leaves are used as an ingredient of a tasty tea called “Biwa cha” in Japanese. The anti-osteoporosis effects of the leaves of loquat in vitro and in vivo have been investigated. After 15 days of feeding normal diet or diet supplemented with 5% loquat leaves, the body weight, viscera weights, and bone mineral density (BMD) of both groups of eight ovariectomized (OVX) mice were compared. The result showed that the loss of BMD in loquat-fed mice was significantly prevented in three parts of the body, especially in the trabecular bone of the head (<i>P</i> < 0.05), abdomen (<i>P</i> < 0.01), and lumbar (<i>P</i> < 0.05) compared to the control group. No hypertrophy in the uterus by the loquat leaves diet was observed. The effect of the extract (447.25 g) prepared from the dried leaves of loquat (2.36 kg) was further studied on RANKL-induced osteoclast differentiation and cell viability. The extract suppressed the differentiation of osteoclasts under 50, 125, 250, and 500 μg/mL. Through bioactivity-guided fractionation, ursolic acid (<b>1</b>) was isolated and inhibited osteoclast differentiation under 4 and 10 μg/mL. It was concluded that loquat leaves possess the potential to suppress ovariectomy-induced bone mineral density deterioration

Gene and protein expression in the soleus muscle (A–C).

<p>(A) Relative expression levels of genes for energy metabolism (myoglobin, LPL, UCP3, PDK4), mitochondrial proteins (porin, MTCO2, UCP3 and PDK4), and transcription factors (PPARδ, FOXO1, MyoD, myogenin) and a coactivator (PGC1α) for muscle fiber type regulation in soleus muscles from soybean oil-fed (open bars), fish oil-fed (filled bars), and lard-fed (gray bars) rats. Each gene was normalized to β-actin mRNA. Values are expressed as fold changes compared with the soybean oil-fed group. (B) Protein expression levels of fiber type-related markers (myoglobin, UCP3, porin, PGC1α, and FOXO1) and loading control (actin) in the soleus, with densitometry quantification in panel C. The two arrowheads in porin indicate two porin species at 32 and 36 kDa [51], which were summed in panel C. The values are means ± SE for six rats. Different superscripts indicate a significant difference between two groups (p < 0.05, one-way ANOVA; post hoc: Tukey–Kramer multiple-comparison test).</p

Gene and protein expression in the EDL muscle (A–C).

<p>(A) Relative expression levels of genes for energy metabolism (myoglobin, LPL, UCP3, PDK4), mitochondrial proteins (porin, MTCO2, UCP3 and PDK4), and transcription factors (PPARδ, FOXO1, MyoD, myogenin) and a coactivator (PGC1α) for muscle fiber type regulation in EDL muscles from soybean oil-fed (open bars), fish oil-fed (filled bars), and lard-fed (gray bars) rats. Each gene was normalized to β-actin mRNA. Values are expressed as fold changes compared with the soybean oil-fed group. (B) Protein expression levels of fiber type-related markers (myoglobin, UCP3, porin, PGC1α, and FOXO1) and loading control (actin) in the EDL, with densitometry quantification in panel C. The two arrowheads in porin indicate two porin species at 32 and 36 kDa [51], which were summed in panel C. The values are means ± SE for six rats. Different superscripts indicate a significant difference between two groups (p < 0.05, one-way ANOVA; post hoc: Tukey–Kramer multiple-comparison test).</p

Even- and odd-chain saturated fatty acids in serum phospholipids are differentially associated with adipokines

<div><p>Background</p><p>Saturated fatty acids are generally thought to have detrimental effects on health. However, a recent study showed that even- and odd-chain saturated fatty acids had opposite associations with type 2 diabetes. Limited studies of Western populations examined the associations of circulating saturated fatty acids with adipokines, an important role in glucose metabolism.</p><p>Objective</p><p>We examined the associations of saturated fatty acids in serum phospholipids with circulating levels of adipokines among a Japanese population.</p><p>Design</p><p>A cross-sectional study was conducted among 484 Japanese employees (284 men and 200 women) aged 20–65 years. The serum fatty acid composition in the phospholipid fraction was measured by gas-chromatography. Serum leptin, adiponectin, plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), resistin, and visfatin were measured using a Luminex suspension bead-based multiplexed array. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed to assess the association between saturated fatty acids and adipokines, with adjustment for potential confounding variables.</p><p>Results</p><p>Even- and odd-chain saturated fatty acids were differentially associated with adipokines. Higher levels of even-chain saturated fatty acids (14:0 myristic, 16:0 palmitic, and 18:0 stearic acids) were associated with higher levels of resistin (P for trend = 0.048) and lower levels of adiponectin (P for trend = 0.003). By contrast, odd-chain saturated fatty acids (15:0 pentadecanoic and 17:0 heptadecanoic acids) showed inverse associations with leptin and PAI-1 (P for trend = 0.048 and 0.02, respectively). Visfatin was positively associated with both even- and odd-chain saturated fatty acids.</p><p>Conclusions</p><p>The results suggest that even- and odd-chain saturated fatty acids are differentially associated with adipokine profile.</p></div

Relative myosin heavy chain isoform (MyHC1, 2A, 2X, and 2B) mRNA expression in EDL and soleus muscles from soybean oil-fed (open bars), fish oil-fed (filled bars), and lard-fed (gray bars) rats.

<p>Values are calculated based on the ΔCt method (where Ct is the threshold cycle) [25], using the following formula: 2^{-(Ct(target gene) – Ct(β-actin))}, which gives the relative target gene expression compared to β-actin expression. The values are means ± SE for six rats. Relative MyHC2X mRNA expression levels in the EDL differed significantly (p < 0.05) between soybean oil-fed and fish oil-fed rats. Different superscripts indicate a significant difference between two groups (p < 0.05, one-way ANOVA; post hoc: Tukey–Kramer multiple-comparison test).</p

Comparison of the distribution of fatty acids in the serum and gastrocnemius muscle (A–D).

<p>(A) Major fatty acids (more than 4.0%) and (B) minor fatty acids (less than 4.0%) composing lipids in sera from soybean oil-fed (open bars), fish oil-fed (filled bars), and lard-fed (gray bars) rats. (C) Major fatty acids (more than 4.0%) and (D) minor fatty acids (less than 4.0%) composing lipids in gastrocnemius muscles from soybean oil-fed (open bars), fish oil-fed (filled bars), and lard-fed (gray bars) rats. The values are means ± SE for six rats. Different superscripts indicate a significant difference between two groups (p < 0.05, one-way ANOVA; post hoc: Tukey–Kramer multiple-comparison test). 14:0, myristic acid; 16:0, palmitic acid; 16:1n-7, palmitoleic acid; 18:0, stearic acid; 18:1n-9, oleic acid; 18:2n-6, linoleic acid; 18:3n-6, γ-linolenic acid; 18:3n-3, α-linolenic acid; 20:3n-9, mead acid; 20:3n-6, dihomo-γ-linolenic acid; 20:4n-6, arachidonic acid; 20:5n-3, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA); 22:5n-3, docosapentaenoic acid; 22:6n-3, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA); ND, not detected.</p

Relative protein contents of myosin heavy chain isoforms (MyHC1, 2A, 2X, and 2B) in EDL and soleus muscles from soybean oil-fed (open bars), fish oil-fed (filled bars), and lard-fed (gray bars) rats.

<p>The values are means ± SE for six rats. The bands above the graphs represent the MyHC isoforms detected in silver-stained, high-resolution, 8% SDS-PAGE gels for three representative rats from each group. Relative MyHC2X and 2B isoform contents in the EDL differed significantly (p < 0.05) between the soybean oil-fed and fish oil-fed rats. In the soleus, no significant differences were observed in MyHC isoform expression. A mix of rat EDL and soleus samples was used as the four MyHC isoform references (left lane). Different superscripts indicate a significant difference between two groups (p < 0.05, one-way ANOVA; post hoc: Tukey–Kramer multiple-comparison test).</p