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Resveratrol, a polyphenol found in high concentration in the skins of red grapes, was recently shown to reduce adipose (fat) tissue deposition in rats. Previous research suggests that resveratrol has weight management benefits. Rats in this study were fed a diet to induce significant weight gain for 6 weeks. One group of rats was also supplemented with resveratrol at a dose of 30 mg per kg body weight per day, while the other rats served as the control group. After 6 weeks, the rats were evaluated for amounts of white adipose tissue. Also, activity of several enzymes was measured, including lipoprotein lipase, which breaks down lipids, and enzymes involved in the synthesis of fatty acids (lipogenesis), including acetyl-CoA carboxylase, malic enzyme, glucose-6-phosphate-dehydrogenase, and fatty acid synthase. In addition, gene expression of several enzymes involved in lipid metabolism and resveratrol metabolite levels in the adipose tissue was also evaluated. Body weight of the rats was not different between the two groups. However, the group of rats given resveratrol showed a significant decrease in adipose tissue. The researchers also showed that, in the resveratrol group, there was decreased activity in the enzymes involved with lipid synthesis and lipoprotein lipase, which breaks down triglycerides present in lipoproteins to free fatty acids. At the level of gene transcription, there was also a reduction of hormone-sensitive lipase mRNA levels, which is involved in the breakdown of the storage form of fats to free fatty acids. The researchers stated, “It can be proposed that the body fat-lowering effect of resveratrol is mediated, at least in part, by a reduction in fatty acid uptake from circulating triacylglycerols and also in de novo lipogenesis.”
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