Green tea polyphenols alter lipid metabolism in the livers of broiler chickens through increased phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase

Jinbao Huang; Yibin Zhou; Bei Wan; Qiushi Wang; Xiaochun Wan

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0187061

Green tea polyphenols alter lipid metabolism in the livers of broiler chickens through increased phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase

PLoS One. 2017 Oct 26;12(10):e0187061. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0187061. eCollection 2017.

Authors

Jinbao Huang^{1

2}, Yibin Zhou¹, Bei Wan¹, Qiushi Wang¹, Xiaochun Wan^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Tea Plant Biology and Utilization, School of Tea & Food Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, Anhui Province, People's Republic of China.
² International Joint Research Laboratory of Tea Chemistry and Health Effects, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, Anhui Province, People's Republic of China.

Abstract

Our previous results showed that green tea polyphenols (GTPs) significantly altered the expression of lipid-metabolizing genes in the liver of chickens. However, the underlying mechanism was not elucidated. In this study, we further characterized how GTPs influence AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) in the regulation of hepatic fat metabolism. Thirty-six male chickens were fed GTPs at a daily dose of 0, 80 or 160 mg/kg of body weight for 4 weeks. The results demonstrated that oral administration of GTPs significantly reduced hepatic lipid content and abdominal fat mass, enhanced the phosphorylation levels of AMPKα and ACACA, and altered the mRNA levels and enzymatic activities of lipid-metabolizing enzymes in the liver. These results suggested that the activation of AMPK is a potential mechanism by which GTPs regulate hepatic lipid metabolism in such a way that lipid synthesis is reduced and fat oxidation is stimulated.

MeSH terms

AMP-Activated Protein Kinases / metabolism*
Abdominal Fat / drug effects
Animals
Body Weight / drug effects
Chickens
Lipid Metabolism / drug effects*
Liver / drug effects*
Liver / enzymology
Liver / metabolism
Male
Organ Size / drug effects
Phosphorylation
Polyphenols / administration & dosage
Polyphenols / pharmacology*
Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
Tea / chemistry*

Substances

Polyphenols
Tea
AMP-Activated Protein Kinases

Grants and funding

This work was supported, in whole or in part, by Anhui Major Demonstration Project for Leading Talent Team on Tea Chemistry and Health (www.ahedu.gov.cn); the Natural Science Foundation of Anhui province, China (Grant No. 1608085MC54, www.ahkjt.gov.cn); the Natural Science Foundation of the Anhui Higher Education Institutions of China (Key project, Grant No. KJ2015A060, www.ahedu.gov.cn), Youth Science Foundation of Anhui Agricultural University (Grant No. 2014zr009, www.ahau.edu.cn), Talent Foundation of Anhui Agricultural University (Grant No. yj2015-19, www.ahau.edu.cn). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.