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Dried Seaweed (Porphyrayezoensis) Extract Promotes Fat Metabolism in Fatty Liver Cell and Mouse Models

Hideaki Ichihara

Seaweed has been consumed in Japan for over a thousand years. This is a staple in Japanese cuisine with nearly 10 billion pieces produced every year. In this study, we investigated the effect of seaweed extract on fat metabolism using fatty liver cell and mouse models. The results showed that seaweed extract significantly reduced the number of Nile red-positive cells. Furthermore, the administration of seaweed extract resulted in a significant decrease in the levels of cholesterol and triglycerides in fatty liver cell models. An in vivo experiment was performed using fatty liver mice models. The body weight as well as the intraperitoneal fat and liver weight of the fatty liver mice decreased when they were fed seaweed extract. From the micrographs of the liver tissue sections stained with Oil Red O, positive cells were significantly decreased in the seaweed extract group. Upon quantification, the levels of total cholesterol and triglycerides in the liver significantly decreased.