Effects of the Perilla frutescens Britton var. acuta Kudo Ethanol Extract (PFE) on the Improvement of Metabolic Syndrome and Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Induced by High-Fat Diet

Perilla frutescens Britton var. acuta Kudo (PF) is a traditional herb that belongs to the lamiaceae family. PF has been reported to have numerous biological activities, including antioxidant, anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, and neuroprotection effects. This study examined the effects of PF ethanol extract (PFE) on obesity and its complications, particularly focusing on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in C57BL/6J mice fed high-fat diets (HFD). Male mice were fed a normal diet (ND), a HFD, or HFD+PFE (1% w/w, PFE) for 12 weeks. The PFE treatment ameliorated dyslipidemia and hyperglycemia HFD-induced obese mice coupled with the enhanced energy expenditure. The liver weight and hepatic lipotoxicity markers (GOT and GPT) were reduced significantly in the PFE group than in the HFD group. Moreover, the hepatic lipid profiles and morphological analysis showed less hepatic lipid accumulation in the PFE group than the HFD-fed mice. In particular, the expression of hepatic lipogenic genes (Acc1 and Cidea) was down-regulated, whereas the expression of fatty acid oxidation-related genes (Pgc1α and Pparα) was increased. These results suggest that PFE can prevent or attenuate the development of HFD-induced obesity and NAFLD.