Avaliação da atividade antioxidante e antiobesidade dos extrato bruto e da fração acetato de etila da folha da pata-de-vaca (Bauhinia forficata) em camundongos C57BL/6 induzidos a obesidade por dieta hiperlipídica

Abstract

Obesity is a worldwide epidemic that affects people of all ages. Oxidative stress results from the imbalance between antioxidant defenses and the production of reactive oxygen species (ROSs). Obesity can lead to an increase in ROS and, consequently, by contributing to the development of oxidative stress and, therefore, it is a risk factor for several diseases such as type 2 diabetes. The need to control obesity leads to the demand for drugs like orlistat (lipase inhibitor) and medicinal plants that can reverse obesity. Plants are widely used by the population to treat various diseases. The pata-de-vaca, Bauhinia forficata, is a common plant in the Brazilian Cerrado and is on the list of medicinal plants of interest to SUS. Previous studies have revealed a rich amount of phenolic compounds in the ethyl acetate fraction. For this work, evaluations were carried out for 24 hours and for a period of 8 weeks, with the animals in the acute study being fed a balanced standard diet and the animals in the chronic study were being fed a high-fat diet, with only one group being fed a standard diet. . The animals were treated with 2.5% DMSO solution, water extract 30 mg/kg and 300mg/kg, and the ethyl acetate fraction 30mg/kg and 300mg/kg. The consumption, weight gain, lipid profile of the plasma, feces and liver, antioxidant activity, activity of the glutathione enzyme, lipid peroxidation and carbonylated protein of the animals treated with water extract and the ethyl acetate fraction at concentrations 30 mg/kg and 300mg/kg. In acute tests, no changes were observed in the animals' consumption, but the groups treated with orlistat and the ethyl acetate fraction reduced the levels of plasma triglycerides in relation to the vehicle group of the high-fat diet. The food consumption of the animals in the chronic study did not differ, however, we observed that the animals that consumed a high-fat diet obtained greater weight gain. The animals in the chronic study had no differences in antioxidant defenses and the levels of oxidized glutathione were higher than the reduced glutathione even in the animals of the standard group. The animals treated chronically with water extract 300mg/kg and of the ethyl acetate fraction 30mg/kg and 300mg/kg had the levels of carbonylated protein increased in relation to the group treated only with the vehicle and which consumed a high fat diet. The results were not conclusive and it is necessary to analyze the rest of the animals foreseen in the project.