Screening of plant extracts for potential effects on the metabolic syndrome

The metabolic syndrome (MS) is a cluster of risk factors for cardiovascular diseases and the major underlying factors are obesity and insulin resistance (IR). The massive worldwide rise in incidences of obesity and IR has initiated a search for health-promoting plant-derived compounds with potential effects on these. Nine different plant species were tested in a series of bioassays including PPARγ transactivation, adipocyte differentiation, glucose uptake in fat and muscle cells, as well as fat accumulation in the nematode C. elegans. Eight of these were shown to contain compounds with potential bioactivities in one or several of the bioassays. Tested at 100µg/mL the extract of golden root (Rhodiola rosea) showed promising activity in all bioassays. Extracts of golden root contain flavonoids and phenylethanol derivatives (e.g., salidroside) that may be responsible for the observed activity. The dichloromethane extract of carrots (Daucus carota) also exhibited promising bio-activities and a bioassay-guided investigation identified the polyacetylene falcarinol as one of the active components. Further investigations of the bioactive principles in all the extracts are ongoing to reveal their potential application within treatment and/or prevention of MS-related disorders.