Synergistic interactions of apigenin, naringin, quercetin and emodin on inhibition of 3T3-L1 preadipocyte differentiation and pancreas lipase activity

The interactions of four natural compounds including apigenin, naringin, emodin and quercetin were investigated on inhibiting 3T3-L1 preadipocyte differentiation and pancreas lipase activity. Oil Red O staining was conducted to visualise and quantify lipid accumulation. The difference between experimental and calculated results was utilised for determining the interaction types. Interestingly, emodin synergistically interacted with the other three compounds, and the combination of emodin and apigenin exhibited the strongest synergistic effect in both differentiation and pancreas lipase assays. Results implied that the combination of apigenin and emodin may be regarded as a promising complementary therapy for management of overweight or obesity. (C) 2016 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of Asia Oceania Association for the Study of Obesity.