Antioxidant <i>Baccharis trimera</i> Leaf Extract Suppresses Lipid Accumulation in <i>C. elegans</i> Dependent on Transcription Factor NHR-49
Flávia Roberta Monteiro Souza,
Giovanna Melo Martins Silva,
Cesar Orlando Muñoz Cadavid,
Lucas dos Santos Lisboa,
Maylla Maria Correia Leite Silva,
Weslley Souza Paiva,
Marcelo José Pena Ferreira,
Riva de Paula Oliveira,
Hugo Alexandre Oliveira Rocha
Affiliations
Flávia Roberta Monteiro Souza
Laboratório de Biotecnologia de Polímeros Naturais (BIOPOL), Programa de Pós-graduação em Bioquímica e Biologia Molecular, Centro de Biociências, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte—UFRN, Natal 59078-970, Brazil
Giovanna Melo Martins Silva
Laboratório de Genética Bioquímica (LGB), Programa de Pós-graduação em Biotecnologia, Centro de Biociências, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte—UFRN, Natal 59078-970, Brazil
Cesar Orlando Muñoz Cadavid
Laboratório de Genética Bioquímica (LGB), Programa de Pós-graduação em Biotecnologia, Centro de Biociências, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte—UFRN, Natal 59078-970, Brazil
Lucas dos Santos Lisboa
Laboratório de Biotecnologia de Polímeros Naturais (BIOPOL), Programa de Pós-graduação em Bioquímica e Biologia Molecular, Centro de Biociências, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte—UFRN, Natal 59078-970, Brazil
Maylla Maria Correia Leite Silva
Laboratório de Biotecnologia de Polímeros Naturais (BIOPOL), Programa de Pós-graduação em Bioquímica e Biologia Molecular, Centro de Biociências, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte—UFRN, Natal 59078-970, Brazil
Weslley Souza Paiva
Laboratório de Biotecnologia de Polímeros Naturais (BIOPOL), Programa de Pós-graduação em Bioquímica e Biologia Molecular, Centro de Biociências, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte—UFRN, Natal 59078-970, Brazil
Marcelo José Pena Ferreira
Laboratório de Fitoquímica, Departamento de Botânica, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo—USP, Rua do Matão, 277, São Paulo 05508-090, Brazil
Riva de Paula Oliveira
Laboratório de Genética Bioquímica (LGB), Programa de Pós-graduação em Biotecnologia, Centro de Biociências, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte—UFRN, Natal 59078-970, Brazil
Hugo Alexandre Oliveira Rocha
Laboratório de Biotecnologia de Polímeros Naturais (BIOPOL), Programa de Pós-graduação em Bioquímica e Biologia Molecular, Centro de Biociências, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte—UFRN, Natal 59078-970, Brazil
Obesity is a global public health problem that is associated with oxidative stress. One of the strategies for the treatment of obesity is the use of drugs; however, these are expensive and have numerous side effects. Therefore, the search for new alternatives is necessary. Baccharis trimera is used in Brazilian folk medicine for the treatment of obesity. Here, B. trimera leaf extract (BT) showed antioxidant activity in seven in vitro tests, and it was not toxic to 3T3 murine fibroblasts or Caenorhabditis elegans. Furthermore, BT reduces the intracellular amount of reactive oxygen species and increases C. elegans survival. Moreover, these effects were not dependent on transcription factors. The inhibition of fat accumulation by BT in the C. elegans model was also investigated. BT reduced lipid accumulation in animals fed diets without or with high amount of glucose. Furthermore, it was observed using RNA interference (iRNA) that BT depends on the transcription factor NHR-49 to exert its effect. Phytochemical analysis of BT revealed rutin, hyperoside, and 5-caffeoylquinic acid as the main BT components. Thus, these data demonstrate that BT has antioxidant and anti-obesity effects. However, further studies should be conducted to understand the mechanisms involved in its action.
