Fucoidan antagonizes diet-induced obesity and inflammation in mice
Lei Wang, Kun Zhang, Xin Ding, Yan Wang, Hui Bai, Qing Yang, Jingjing Ben, Hanwen Zhang, Xiaoyu Li, Qi Chen, Xudong Zhu
Abstract
Obesity is an escalating global pandemic posing a serious threat to human health. The intervention therapy using weight-reducing drugs, accompanied by lifestyle modification, is a strategy for the treatment of obesity. In the present study, we explored the role of fucoidan, a seaweed compound, on high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity in mice. We found that fucoidan treatment significantly reduced the body fat and caused redistribution of visceral and subcutaneous fat in HFD-fed mice. Meanwhile, fucoidan treatment inhibited adipocyte hypertrophy and inflammation in adipose tissue. Collectively, these results suggest that fucoidan may be a promising treatment for obesity and obesity-induced complications.