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ARS Home » Plains Area » Manhattan, Kansas » Center for Grain and Animal Health Research » Grain Quality and Structure Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #392545
Research Project: Grain Composition Traits Related to End-Use Quality and Value of Sorghum

Location: Grain Quality and Structure Research

Title: Anti-adipogenic activity of high-phenolic sorghum brans in pre-adipocytes

Author
item LEE, HEE-SEOP - University Of Maryland
item SANTANA, ADINA - Kansas State University
item Peterson, Jaymi
item YUCEL, UMUT - Kansas State University
item PERUMAL, RAMASAMY - Kansas State University
item De Leon Iii, Joaquin
item LEE, SEONG-HO - University Of Maryland
item Smolensky, Dmitriy

Submitted to: Nutrients
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/29/2022
Publication Date: 4/2/2022
Citation: Lee, H., Santana, A.L., Peterson, J.M., Yucel, U., Perumal, R., De Leon III, J.A., Lee, S., Smolensky, D. 2022. Anti-adipogenic activity of high-phenolic sorghum brans in pre-adipocytes. Nutrients. 14(7):1493. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14071493.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14071493

Interpretive Summary: There is mounting evidence that sorghum varieties with high phenolics content may have an anti-obesity and anti-diabetic effect. This study explored the mechanisms behind this effect using mouse fat cells in a cell culture system. Three high polyphenol sorghum extracts were studied along a white sorghum extract with low amounts of polyphenols. All three high polyphenol extracts exerted an anti-fat accumulation effect in the cells while the white sorghum extract did not. The three high polyphenol varieties also exerted an antioxidant effect and repressed insulin signaling in the cells. Additional experiments found that treatment by polyphenols rich extracts was more effective in immature than mature fat cells. Similarities between the sorghum varieties were also compared. This study provided useful mechanistic data and determined similarities between sorghum varieties with an anti-obesity and anti-diabetic effect which can be studied further.

Technical Abstract: Obesity is one of the leading public health problems that can result in life-threatening metabolic and chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and cancer. Sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] is the fifth most important cereal crop in the world and certain genotypes of sorghum have high polyphenol content. PI570481, SC84 and commercially available sumac sorghum are high polyphenol genotypes which have demonstrated strong anti-cancer activities in previous studies. The objective of this study was to explore a potential anti-obesity use of extracts from sorghum bran in the differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes and to investigate cellular and molecular responses in differentiated adipocytes to elucidate related mechanisms. None of the four different sorghum bran extracts (PI570481, SC84, Sumac and white sorghum as low polyphenol control) caused cytotoxicity in undifferentiated and differentiated 3T3-L1 cells at doses used in this study. Sorghum bran extracts (PI570481, SC84, Sumac) reduced intracellular lipid accumulation and expression of adipogenic and lipogenic proteins in a dose-dependent manner in differentiated 3T3-L1 cells. The same polyphenol containing sorghum bran extracts also repressed production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and MAPK signaling pathways and repressed insulin signaling and glucose uptake in differentiated 3T3-L1 cells. These data propose a potential use of high phenolic sorghum bran for prevention of obesity.