Adiponectin Homolog Osmotin, a Potential Anti-Obesity Compound, Suppresses Abdominal Fat Accumulation in C57BL/6 Mice on High-Fat Diet and in 3T3-L1 Adipocytes

Objectives Obesity is characterized by excessive fat accumulation due to an imbalance between energy intake and expenditure. Osmotin, a plant derived natural protein, is a known homolog of adiponectin. To analyze the role of Osmotin in controlling energy metabolism by suppressing abdominal fat accumulation. Methods We investigated the effects of osmotin in C57BL/6 mice on high-fat diet and in 3T3-L1 adipocytes by Biochemical tests, Immunofluorescence confocal Microscopy, RT-PCR, and Flow cytometry. Results In this study, we investigated the anti-obesity effects of osmotin on adipocyte differentiation and regulation of the related factors lipolysis and glucose uptake in 3T3-L1 cells in vitro. Moreover, we analyzed the role of osmotin in prevention of insulin resistance, excess fat accumulation and metabolic syndrome in high-fat diet mouse model via AMPK and MAPK pathways in vivo. In addition, osmotin caused cell cycle arrest in G(0)/G(1) phase by regulating expression of p21, p27 and CDK2 and improved glucose control, as concluded from glucose and insulin tolerance tests. Conclusion These results reveal the role of osmotin in AMPK downstream signaling. These results provide the first indication that osmotin exerts therapeutic effects on obesity, which could promote development of therapeutic aspects for obesity and related diseases.