TART-CHERRIES SUPPLEMENTATION COULD MODIFY BRAIN ALTERATIONS IN A ANIMAL MODEL OF OBESITY?

Tart cherries (Prunus cerasus L.) are a rich source of anthocyanins, phytochemical flavonoids found in red-, blue- and purple-pigmented fruits and vegetables. Anthocyanin-rich plant extracts can modify lipid metabolism in vitro and reduce hyperlipidemia in vivo. Dyslipidemia, hypertension, impaired glucose tolerance, insulin resistance often accompanied obesity, in which the accumulation of adipose tissue and metabolic changes increase the incidence of cardio- and cerebro-vascular diseases. This study evaluate the potential positive effects of tart-cherries extract and seeds powder on rats with Diet-Induced Obesity (DIO). These rats were studied for 17 weeks of hypercaloric diet with the supplementation of tart cherries seeds powder (DS) and seeds powder plus tart cherries extract, containing 1mg of anthocyanins (DES). DIO rats were compared to the control rats with standard diet (CHOW). We measured food consumption, fat mass content and fasting glycemia, insulin levels, cholesterol and triglycerides, in order to determine the systemic effects of high fat diet. In the brain, hippocampus and frontal cortex were analyzed, immunochemical ,immunohistochemical and qRT-PCR techniques to determine neuronal and glial alterations. DIO rats increased significantly their body weight, insulin and glucose levels, systolic blood pressure, after 17 weeks of high fat diet, in comparison to CHOW. No difference in body weight was found in DS and DES rats compared to age-matched DIO rats. Supplementation of tart cherries in DS and DES induce a decrease of the blood pressure and the glycemia. Furthermore, the serum levels of thiobarbituric reactive substances decreased without changes of the antioxidant properties. Immunochemical and immunohistochemical analysis showed that tart-cherries supplementation reduce the glial-fibrillary acid protein (GFAP) in hippocampus and in frontal cortex of DIO rats. Morover, the expression of neurofilament (NF) decreased in frontal cortex and hippocampus of DIO compared to CHOW. No differences were found in DS and DES rats compared to control DIO rats. On the other hand tart cherries supplementation is not able to modify the modulation of Synaptophisin and ions channels expression in DIO rats. These preliminary findings indicate that supplementation with tart cherries, although did not reduce the body weight in DIO rats, prevent the development of related risk factors. Further studies are needed to better clarify the benefits of tart cherry supplementation on brain, and the possible use in obesity-induced cerebrovascular disease.