Anti-Obesity Effects of Ecklonia cava Extract in High-Fat Diet-Induced Obese Rats

Obesity is becoming a global epidemic as a result of high-calorie food intake and unhealthy lifestyles. Different marine plants, especially brown algae ( ), are traditionally used to treat different health-related issues. The study was carried out to investigate the anti-obesity properties of 70% ethanol extract. To evaluate the anti-obesity effect of , both in vitro and in vivo tests were performed. suppresses pre-adipocyte 3T3-L1 differentiation in a dose-dependent manner. In HFD-induced obese rats' models, administration of 125, 250, and 500 mg/kg significantly decreases total body weight and organs, especially liver weight, in all treatment groups. Adipose tissue weight, including subcutaneous, epididymal, peritoneal, and mesenteric adipose tissue, was markedly reduced in -treated HFD rats in dose-dependent manners. In addition, liver-related biomarkers AST, ALP, ALT, and GGT were evaluated; the lower level of liver-related biomarkers indicates no liver injury or fatty liver issue in HFD treatment groups. In addition, treatment has significant effects on the expression of adipogenic and lipogenic (PPAR-γ, FAS, LPL, and SREBP-1c) genes. Altogether, these results show the anti-obesity effect of . We concluded that could be a potential candidate for the prevention of obesity-induced by a high-fat diet.