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Supplementation with 9-cis β-carotene-rich alga Dunaliella improves hyperglycemia and adipose tissue inflammation in diabetic mice

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Abstract

Several species of the alga Dunaliella contain high levels of β-carotene. Low dietary β-carotene intake is associated with type 2 diabetes. Dunaliella contains high levels of all-trans and 9-cis isomers of β-carotene and is the best known naturally occurring nutritional source of 9-cis β-carotene. Since vitamin A has been suggested to play a role in glucose and lipid metabolism, we aimed to study the effect of Dunaliella supplementation on diabetes in mice. Ten diabetic db/db mice were fed chow diet fortified with 8 % 9-cis-rich Dunaliella powder. Ten db/db and heterozygous db/+ mice each served as controls and were fed chow diet alone. The control db/db mice developed severe hyperglycemia with fasting glucose levels reaching 400 mg dL−1. Dunaliella significantly inhibited the elevation of plasma glucose (p = 0.007). The area under the curve of the glucose tolerance test was 24 % lower in Dunaliella-treated mice than in the control db/db mice. Triglyceride elevation was significantly lower in the Dunaliella group than in the db/db group (p = 0.007). The mRNA levels of several pro-inflammatory genes in adipose tissue, including monocyte chemotactic protein-1, intercellular adhesion molecule, vascular adhesion molecule-1, receptor-associated protein factor 6, and p-selectin, were elevated in the db/db group as compared to the db/+, whereas their levels were significantly lower in the Dunaliella-treated group. These results suggest that 9-cis β-carotene-rich Dunaliella may inhibit diabetes in db/db mice by reducing inflammation in adipose tissue. This study also emphasizes the importance of β-carotene isomers in our diet.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Esfir Ulman for technical help and to Dr. Dorit Samocha-Bonnet for critical reading of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Bert W. Strassburger Lipid Center, Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Israel

    Ayelet Harari, Dror Harats, Daniella Marko, Hofit Cohen, Iris Barshack, Ayelet Gonen, Dikla Ben-Shushan, Yehuda Kamari & Aviv Shaish

  2. Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel

    Ayelet Harari, Dror Harats, Daniella Marko, Hofit Cohen, Ayelet Gonen, Dikla Ben-Shushan & Yehuda Kamari

  3. Institute of Pathology, Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Israel

    Iris Barshack

  4. N.B.T Eilat, Eilat, Israel

    Ami Ben-Amotz

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  1. Ayelet Harari
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Correspondence to Aviv Shaish.

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Financial interest

Aviv Shaish, Dror Harats, and Ayelet Harari have received a grant from Nikken Sohonsha. Ami Ben-Amotz is a consultant of Nikken Sohonsha.

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Harari, A., Harats, D., Marko, D. et al. Supplementation with 9-cis β-carotene-rich alga Dunaliella improves hyperglycemia and adipose tissue inflammation in diabetic mice. J Appl Phycol 25, 687–693 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-012-9903-4

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