Effect of Moringa oleifera on advanced glycation end-product formation and lipid metabolism gene expression in HepG2 cells.

In Thai traditional medicine, Moringa oleifera is used for the treatment of diabetes and hyperlipidemia. Oxidative stress plays a major role in the pathogenesis of many degenerative diseases, such as hyperlipidemia, diabetes mellitus, and cardiovascular disease. We evaluated the antioxidant effect of M. oleifera extract (MOE) for reduction of advanced glycation end-product (AGE) formation, cell viability, oxidative stress, and lipid metabolism gene expression in HepG2 cells. We found that the lyophilized form of MOE in 80% ethanol possessed mean (± SD) total antioxidant, polyphenolic, and flavonoid contents of 9307 ± 364 TE mM/kg dry mass, 218 ± 1 GE mM/kg dry mass, and 286 ± 12 QE mM/kg dry mass, determined using an oxygen radical absorbance capacity assay, a Folin Ciocalteu phenol assay, and a total flavonoids assay, respectively. Concentrations of 2.5-10.0 mg/mL MOE could inhibit AGE-formation by 10-45%, and 100-1000 mg/L MOE reduced intracellular oxidative stress (P < 0.05) in a dose-dependent manner in the DCFH-DA assay. However, MOE induced cytotoxicity at high doses (2000-3000 mg/L), as shown by the MTT assay. MOE significantly downregulated the mRNA expression of the HMG-CoAR, PPARα1, and PPARγ genes (P < 0.05). We concluded that M. oleifera could have benefits for human health by reducing oxidative stress and AGE formation. Moreover, M. oleifera may reduce cholesterol and lipid synthesis by suppression of HMG-CoAR, PPARα1, and PPARγ gene expression, thereby maintaining lipid homeostasis.