Geraniol as a nutrigenomic hypolipidemic agent

GALLE ME; CRESPO ROSANA; SOBERON MV; POLO MP; GARCIA DE BRAVO, MM

Mendoza

Congreso; XLVIII Reunión Anual de SAIB; 2012

SAIB

Hyperlipidemia can trigger various metabolic diseases such as obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Nowadays, several natural compounds with antihyperlipidemic properties have been in the spotlight in the field of medical sciences. To evaluate the in vivo effect of geraniol (GOH) -a terpenoid derived from herbal plants- on lipid metabolism, nude mice were fed with 25; 50 or 75 mmolGOH/kg diet for 21 days. Three hours before sacrifice, animals were injected with 25 µCi of 14C-acetate. Plasma total cholesterol and triglyceride levels of mice fed with 50-75 mmolGOH/Kg diet were significantly reduced (20 and 30−90%, respectively). GOH decreased 14C-acetate incorporated into fatty acids (34-75%), total (25-72%) and nonsaponifiable lipids (53-62%) in the liver of treated mice, and reduced HMGCR activity (25-42%). Preliminary results revealed that GOH regulated the expression of HMGCR and LDLR at transcriptional and/or posttranscriptional levels; only higher doses showed to upregulate them. Posttranscriptional inhibition of HMGCR was suggested by the decrease of enzyme activity and protein levels observed in mice fed with all doses of GOH. These results showed that GOH may enhance LDLR gene expression with LDL clearance capacity, and decrease lipid biosynthesis. This study suggests that GOH can be a potential pharmaceutical agent for the prevention and treatment of hyperlipidemia.