The Influence of Supplementation of Anthocyanins on Obesity-Associated Comorbidities: A Concise Review

Abstract

Anthocyanins are water-soluble plant pigments, and based on their chemical structure (nature, position, and the number of sugar moieties attached; the number of hydroxyl groups; acylation of sugars with acids) about 635 different anthocyanins have been identified and reported from plants. Cyanidin, peonidin, pelargonidin, petunidin, and malvidin are the commonly found anthocyanidins (aglycon forms of anthocyanins) in edible plants out of almost 25 anthocyanidins that are identified (based on the position of methoxyl and hydroxyl groups in the rings) in nature. Anthocyanins are known for numerous health benefits including anti-diabetes, anti-obesity, anti-inflammatory bowel disease, anti-cancer, etc. Obesity can be defined as excessive or abnormal adipose tissue and body mass, which increases the risk of developing chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancers, etc. The manuscript summarizes the recent updates in the effects of anthocyanins supplementation on the health status of obese subjects, and briefly the results of in vitro and in vivo studies. Several studies confirmed that the consumption of anthocyanins-rich food improved obesity-associated dysbiosis in gut microbiota and inflammation in adipose tissue. Anthocyanin consumption prevents obesity in healthy subjects, and aids in maintaining or reducing the body weight of obese subjects, also improving the metabolism and energy balance. Though preclinical studies proved the beneficial effects of anthocyanins such as the fact that daily intake of anthocyanin rich fruits and vegetables might aid weight maintenance in every healthy individual, Juҫara pulp might control the inflammatory status of obesity, Queen garnet plum juice reduced the blood pressure and risk factors associated with metabolic disorders, and highbush organic blueberries improved the metabolism of obese individuals, we don't have an established treatment procedure to prevent or manage the over-weight condition and its comorbidities. Thus, further studies on the optimum dose, duration, and mode of supplementation of anthocyanins are required to develop an anthocyanins-based clinical procedure.

Keywords: anthocyanins; body weight; chronic diseases; cyanidin-3-O-β-D-glucoside; obesity.

Figure 1

Common anthocyanidins in nature.

Figure 2

The possible mechanism and the players underlying the anti-obesity associated beneficial effect of anthocyanins. Anthocyanins supplementation positively regulated the genes and proteins involved in glucose, fatty acid, lipid metabolism, energy homeostasis, immune and inflammatory system, antioxidant and anti-angiogenic machineries, and nervous and neurotransmitters, which in turn improved the inflammatory and immune system, fatty acid and lipid metabolism, glucose metabolism, energy expenditure, and insulin sensitivity, and reduced the body weight and food consumption. (ACC: Acetyl-CoA carboxylase; ACO: Acyl CoA oxidase; AhR: Aryl hydrocarbon receptor; AKt1: Serine-threonine protein kinase-1; ANGPTL4: Angiopoietin-like 4; aP2: Adipocyte-specific fatty acid binding protein; C/EBPs: CCAAT/enhancer binding Proteins; COX-2: Cyclooxygenase-2; CPT-1: Carnitine palmitoyltransferase-1; CPT1α: Carnitine palmitoyl-transferase-1α; FAS: Fatty acid synthase; FCL: Fatty acid CoA ligase; GABA_B1R: Gamma-amino butyric acid receptor; glut-1: Glucose transporter-1; GLUT-4: Glucose transporter-4; gys-1: Glycogen synthase-1; HbA1c: Hemoglobin A1c; HOMA-IR index: Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance; IL-1β: Interleukin-1β; IL-6: Interleukin-6; irs-1: Insulin receptor substrate-1; irs-2: Insulin receptor substrate-2; LDL: Low-density lipoprotein; LPL: Lipoprotein lipase; MCP-1: Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1; MDA: Malondialdehyde; MRP-2: Macrophage inflammatory protein-related protein-2; NF-κB: Nuclear factor κB; NLRP3: NACHT, LRR and PYD domains-containing protein-3; NOD1: Nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-containing protein-1; NOD2: Nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-containing protein-2; NPY: Neuropeptide Y; NRF1: Nuclear respiratory factor-1; NRF2: Nuclear respiratory factor-2; pAMPK: Phosphorylated AMP-activated protein kinase; p-CREB: phosphorylated cAMP-response element binding protein; PI3K: Phosphoinositide 3-kinase; pIRS: Phosphorylated insulin receptor substrate; PKA: protein kinase A-α; PPARα: Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-α; PPARγ: Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ; PRDM16: PR domain-containing protei-16; SREBP-1c: Sterol regulatory element binding protein-1c; STAT1: Signal transducer and activator of transcription-1; TC: Total cholesterol; TFAM: Transcription factor A; TG: Triglycerides; TNF-α: Tumor necrosis factor-α; UCP-1: Uncoupling protein-1; VEGRF2: Vascular endothelial growth factor; VLDL: Very-low-density lipoprotein).