Hepatoprotective Activity of Easter Lily (Lilium longiflorum Thunb.) Bulb Extracts.

Format: Abstract Send to J Agric Food Chem. 2015 Nov 11;63(44):9722-8. doi: 10.1021/acs.jafc.5b04078. Epub 2015 Oct 30. Tang W1, Munafo JP Jr2, Palatini K3,4, Esposito D3,4, Huang MT5, Komarnytsky S3,4, Ho CT1, Gianfagna TJ2. Author information 1 Department of Food Science, Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey , 65 Dudley Road, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08901, United States. 2 Department of Plant Biology, Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey , 59 Dudley Road, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08901, United States. 3 Plants for Human Health Institute, North Carolina State University, North Carolina Research Campus , 600 Laureate Way, Kannapolis, North Carolina 28081, United States. 4 Department of Food, Bioprocessing & Nutrition Sciences, North Carolina State University , 400 Dan Allen Drive, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, United States. 5 Department of Chemical Biology, Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey , 160 Frelinghuysen Road, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854, United States. Abstract The hepatoprotective activities of two different extracts, a hydroethanolic crude bulb extract (CB) and a steroidal glycoside-rich 1-butanol extract (BuOH), prepared from the bulbs of Easter lily (Lilium longiflorum Thunb.), were evaluated in a 24 week study in the female KK.Cg-A(y)/J Type 2 diabetic mouse model. Animals were divided into six groups (n = 16): control mice received Easter lily bulb extract-free drinking water together with a low- or high-fat diet (diabetic control); drinking water for the remaining groups was supplemented with CB extract (1%), BuOH extract (0.1 or 0.2%), and reference drug Metformin (0.001%), together with a high-fat diet. Both CB and BuOH extract treatment groups exhibited significantly improved liver function based on comparisons of triglycerides [diabetic 219 ± 34 mg/dL, CB 131 ± 27 mg/dL, BuOH(0.2%) 114 ± 35 mg/dL], CB total cholesterol (TC) (diabetic 196 ± 12 mg/dL, CB 159 ± 5 mg/dL), average liver mass [diabetic 2.96 ± 0.13 g, CB 2.58 ± 0.08 g, BuOH(0.1%) 2.48 ± 0.13 g], alanine transferase [diabetic 74 ± 5 units/L, CB 25 ± 1 units/L, BuOH(0.1%) 45 ± 1 units/L], and histological examinations. Glucose metabolism was improved only in CB, which was confirmed by oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT) in diet-induced obese C57BL/6J mice exposed to CB extract. These data suggest that steroidal glycosides 1-5 might play a role in the hepatoprotective activity of the BuOH extracts, while the results of the TC measurements and OGTT study indicate that other constituents present in the CB extract are responsible for its hypocholesterolemic and hypoglycemic activity. KEYWORDS: Easter lily; Lilium longiflorum Thunb.; hepatoprotective activity; hypoglycemic activity; steroidal glycoside PMID: 26491954 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.5b04078 [Indexed for MEDLINE]