Treatment with taurine and vitamin E did not reverse fatty liver more than a chow diet in rats.

Title: Treatment with taurine and vitamin E did not reverse fatty liver more than a chow diet in rats.

Meeting: Evaluating Bioactive Food Components in Obesity and Cancer Prevention.

Authors: Portia S Allen1, Andrew W Brown2,3, Michelle M Bohan Brown4, Donald C Beitz1,4
1Department of Animal Science, Iowa State University
2Nutrition Obesity Research Center, University of Alabama at Birmingham
3Office of Energetics, University of Alabama at Birmingham
4Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Molecular Biology, Iowa State University

Abstract:
Background: Excess lipid accumulation in the liver can result in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Nutraceutical interventions for fatty liver, if effective, hold promise in that they are often well tolerated and easily distributed.
Objective: To determine if taurine and vitamin E (vitE) in nutraceutical doses can reverse liver lipid accumulation in a rodent model of diet-induced fatty liver.
Methods: Male, 11-week-old Sprague Dawley rats were fed an ad libitum high-fat, choline deficient diet for 28 days to induce fatty liver. At the end of the induction-phase, 11 rats were euthanized to confirm increased liver lipid content. The remaining rats were then randomized to a treatment-phase consisting of a standard chow either alone (Control) or with metformin (as a positive control), vitE, taurine, or vitE plus taurine (Combo) for an additional 28 days (n=10-11 per treatment). Blood was taken at days 0, 28, and 56, and analyzed for insulin, glucose, total cholesterol, triacylglycerols, non-esterified fatty acids, and adiponectin. Carcasses were measured for dry matter, lipid content, and total weight. Livers were analyzed for total lipids, triacylglycerol content, and total weight.
Results: All treatments resulted in lower liver lipids compared to the induction phase rats. Although not significantly different from the control, vitE and Combo treatments had increased liver lipids compared to metformin.  Metformin-treated rats consumed less food, with no other significant differences in food intake. The Combo carcass weights were significantly greater than the other treatments, with no other significant differences in carcass characteristics. No differences were seen in blood metabolites.
Conclusions: Diet-induced fatty liver was improved by changing diet, with or without neutraceuticals or metformin.  VitE did not decrease liver lipids to the same extent as metformin.
Keywords: Fatty liver, nutraceuticals, taurine, vitamin E