In Vivo Lipid Regulation Mechanism of Polygoni Multiflori Radix in High-Fat Diet Fed Rats

Mechanisms of the water extracts of Polygoni Multiflori Radix (PMR) and its processed products (PMRP) on liver lipid metabolism were observed in this paper. Aqueous extract of PMR and PMRP was given to nonalcoholic fatty liver model rats, respectively. PMR was better in reducing the contents of very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) than PMRP and the positive control groups. In the aspect of regulating TG, medium dose PMR reduced the activity of diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGAT) to 1536 ± 47.69 pg/mL (P < 0.001) and promoted the expression of hepatic lipase (HL) to 23.59 ± 0.2758 U/mL (P < 0.05). HL promotion ability of medium dose PMR was similar with the simvastatin positive control. Both medium and high dose of PMR showed significant alterations in TC, which were related to the downregulation effects on hydroxyl methyl-glutaryl coenzyme A reductase (HMGCR) and upregulation effects on cholesterol 7-alpha-hydroxylase or cytochrome P450 7A (CYP7A). Quantitative relationships research indicated that the prominent effect on inhibiting the content of HMGCR (r = 0.756, P < 0.05) was strongly positive correlated with to the TC regulation effects. Effects of PMR on enhancing decomposition rate or reducing de novo synthesis rate of TG and TC were better than PMRP.