Obesity is a chronic, relapsing disease driven in part by dysregulated adipocyte differentiation and lipid metabolism. Natural products that act directly on adipocytes to limit lipid storage and enhance energy expenditure are of growing interest as co...
Obesity is a chronic, relapsing disease driven in part by dysregulated adipocyte differentiation and lipid metabolism. Natural products that act directly on adipocytes to limit lipid storage and enhance energy expenditure are of growing interest as complementary anti-obesity strategies. Sparassis latifolia is an edible mushroom containing both polysaccharides and phthalide-class metabolites with reported metabolic benefits in vivo, but the cellular mechanisms underlying its effects on adipocytes have not been fully elucidated. Here, we evaluated the impact of a 30% ethanol extract of S. latifolia (SL30E) and the isolated phthalide sparalide B on adipogenesis and lipid metabolism in 3T3-L1 cells.
SL30E significantly reduced lipid droplet and triglyceride accumulation in differentiated adipocytes in a dose-dependent manner and was more effective than the positive control extract CQR-300, without inducing overt cytotoxicity. Mechanistically, SL30E suppressed early adipogenic programming by downregulating PPARγ and CEBPα and required the early differentiation period to exert its maximal effect. SL30E increased β-catenin levels, and β-catenin knockdown abolished its ability to inhibit adipogenic transcription factors and lipid droplet formation, indicating a β-catenin-dependent anti-adipogenic mechanism. In more mature adipocytes, SL30E also regulated lipolysis, lipophagy, and thermogenesis-related energy metabolism.
Structural analysis of an active small-molecule fraction identified sparalide B (4,5,7-trihydroxy-6-methoxyphthalide) as a key component. Sparalide B alone inhibited lipid droplet formation, suppressed PPARγ and CEBPα, reduced perilipin-1, and activated AMPK, UCP2, and PGC-1α, with early-stage and β-catenin dependence similar to SL30E. Overall, these findings suggest that S. latifolia and sparalide B may be useful candidates for developing anti-obesity strategies that act directly on adipocytes by reducing fat cell formation and promoting fat breakdown and energy use.