Caralluma dalzielii Ethanolic Extract Prevents High-fat-diet-induced Obesity in Mice

Aim: The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of C. dalzielii extract on weight, biochemical parameter and antioxidant enzymes of obese Mice induced.

Place and Duration of Study: Laboratory of Biochemistry and Applied Chemistry (LABIOCA), Research Institute for Health Sciences (IRSS).

Background: Obesity is a pathology that occurs as a result of energy imbalance and this metabolic pathology is dramatically increasing in developing countries and it is the cause of many morbidities. Caralluma dalzielii is a medicinal plant traditionally used in northern Burkina Faso for weight management. The objective of this study was to determine the anti-obesity potential of the ethanolic extract of C. dalzielii.

Methods: The ethanol extract obtained by maceration was administered by gavage to NMRI mice for the determination of toxicity, the effect of the extract on weight gain, food intake and a biochemical parameter of serum. The antioxidant and inhibitory activity of digestive enzymes (pancreatic lipase and trypsin), inflammatory enzymes (lipoxygenase and xanthine oxidase) were also determined.

Results: Caralluma dalzielii ethanolic extract has exhibited no toxicity (with an LD50 greater than 3000 mg / kg body weight). It caused a reduction of 7.1% on body weight of the animals treated at 400 mg/kg against an increase of 38.16% in the positive control. Animals in the control group showed a higher concentration of triglyceride and LDL-Cholesterol in serum than those that received the extract. Caralluma dalzielii extract has inhibited lipoxygenase at 65.75 ± 0.05% (at 1 mg/ml) greater than that of gallic acid used as a reference (54.87 ± 0.04%). It has also shown good inhibition potential on pancreatic lipase, trypsin and DPPH radical.

Conclusion: These results suggest that Caralluma dalzielii extract may be a good candidate for the establishment of a phytomedicine in the management of obesity and its complications