Succinic acid alleviates obesity and fatty liver disease induced by high fat diet in mice

Abstract

Abstract: Objective To explore the alleviative effect of succinic acid on weight gain, elevated blood lipids and blood sugar, and concurrent hepatic steatosis in mice induced by the high-fat diet. Methods Thirty mice were divided into control group, high-fat diet group and succinic acid-treated high-fat diet group with 10 mice in each group by block random method. The body weight of mice in each group was measured at the beginning of the experiment and subsequently every week. Comparisons between groups were carried out. After 11 weeks of feeding, the levels of serum total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), blood glucose (GLU) and aspartate transaminase (AST) were measured and compared between each group. Mice were sacrificed and livers were weighed to calculate the liver index. The mesenteric fat of each group was also weighed. The livers of mice in each group were stained with hematoxylin-eosin (HE) method, the morphology of liver cells was observed under the microscope to assess the severity of fatty liver. Results Compared with the control group, the body weight of mice in high-fat diet group and the succinic acid-treated high-fat diet group significantly increased after 1 week of feeding (all P<0.05). After 2 and 3 weeks of feeding, the body weight of mice in high-fat diet group and the succinic acid-treated high-fat diet group mice were significantly increased compared with that of control group (all P<0.05). However, the body weight of mice in the succinic acid-treated high-fat diet group were significantly lower than that in the high-fat diet group (P<0.05). After the 4th week to the 11th week, the body weight of mice in the high-fat diet group were significantly higher than that in the control group (all P<0.05), and the body weight of the mice in succinic acid-treated high-fat diet group were significantly lower than that in the high-fat diet group (all P<0.05). After 11 weeks of feeding, the levels of serum TC, TG, GLU and AST in the high-fat diet group mice were increased significantly compared with the control group (all P<0.05). The levels of serum TC, TG, GLU and AST in the succinic acid-treated high-fat diet group were significantly lower than those in the high-fat diet group (all P<0.05). The liver index and mesenteric fat weight in the high-fat diet group were significantly increased compared with the control group (all P<0.05), and the liver index and mesenteric fat weight of mice in the succinic acid-treated high-fat diet group were significantly lower than those in the high-fat diet group (all P<0.05). HE staining showed that the liver cells of mice in the high-fat diet group had obvious steatosis, while the liver cells steatosis of mice in the succinic acid-treated high-fat diet group were significantly alleviated compared with that in the high-fat diet group. Conclusion The succinic acid can significantly alleviate the weight gain caused by high-fat diet in mice, reduce the levels of TC, TG, GLU, AST in the high-fat diet mice, and alleviate fatty liver disease.

Key words: Succinic acid, High-fat diet, Obesity, Fatty liver

XU Yi-qing, CHEN Yuan, CUI Wen-qi, ZHANG Xue-min. Succinic acid alleviates obesity and fatty liver disease induced by high fat diet in mice[J]. Chinese Hepatolgy, 2025, 30(2): 236-239.

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