Anti-obesity effect of broccoli extract sulforaphane

Broccoli seed extract is approved as a new food ingredient, the main active ingredient of broccoli seed extract is sulforaphane. Prothione is a multifunctional enzyme inducer that can induce the body to produce type II detoxification enzymes - glutathione transferase (GST) and quinone reductase (QR).

This study investigated the anti-obesity effects of sulforaphane (SFN) and sulforaphane (GRN) in broccoli leaf extract (BLE) on 3T3-L1 adipocytes and ob/ob mice.

SFN and BLE significantly reduced lipid accumulation and TG content in differentiated 3T3-L1 adipocytes by Oil Red O staining and triglyceride (TG) detection (P<.05).  SFN and BLE increased 2-NBDG uptake by 3T3-L1 adipocytes in a dose-dependent manner.  Western blot analysis confirmed that SFN and BLE increased the phosphorylation levels of AMPK (Thr172) and ACC (Ser79) and decreased the expression of HMGCR in the liver and white adipose tissue of ob/ob mice.

Histological analysis showed that SFN and BLE ameliorated hepatic steatosis and reduced adipocyte size in ob/ob mice.

Taken together,  the content of SFN in BLE may exert a potential anti-obesity effect by regulating the expression of lipid metabolism-related genes, which tend to be up- or down-regulated in ob/ob mice.