They found a substance in the tangerines that could help fight obesity as well as too terrible fight heart disease. Pay attention to the following study was conducted at the University of Western.
The University of Western Ontario has found a substance in the tangerines that not only helps prevent obesity but also offers protection against type 2 diabetes, and even atherosclerosis, the underlying disease responsible for most heart attacks and accidents stroke.
Murray Huff, a scientist at the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry and Erin Mulvihill, a doctoral student, studied the effects of a flavonoid called nobiletin found in tangerines. His research is published in the journal Diabetes.
In a model of metabolic syndrome developed by the laboratory Huff Robarts Research Institute, mice were fed a "western" diet rich in fats and simple sugars. One group became obese and showed all signs associated with the metabolic syndrome: the cholesterol and triglycerides, high insulin levels and glucose and fatty liver. These metabolic abnormalities significantly increase the risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.
The second group of mice fed the same diet itself, which was added nobiletin mandarins, experienced no increase in their levels of cholesterol, triglycerides, insulin or glucose, and gained weight normally. The mice became much more sensitive to the effects of insulin. It was demonstrated that nobiletin could prevent the accumulation of fat in the liver by stimulating the expression of genes involved in burning excess fat, and inhibition of genes responsible for the production of fat.
"The mice treated with nobiletin are basically protected from obesity," says Huff, the Director of the Vascular Biology Research Group Robarts. "And in the longer-term studies, the nobiletin also protected these animals from atherosclerosis, the buildup of plaque in the arteries, which can lead to heart attack or stroke. This study really paves the way for future studies to see if it is an appropriate treatment for the metabolic syndrome and related diseases in people. "
Huff's research has focused on the pharmacological properties of naturally occurring bioactive molecules. Two years ago, his research has attracted international attention when he discovered a grapefruit flavonoid naringenin called, which provides similar protection against obesity and other signs of metabolic syndrome. Huff says, "What is really interesting for us is that nobiletin is ten times more potent in their protective effects of naringenin, and this time, we also demonstrated that nobiletin has the ability to protect against atherosclerosis."
