Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 6, 2025

Exploring the Regulation of Lipid Droplet Catabolism through Lipophagy
Published on: January 31, 2025
Apigenin induced autophagy and stimulated autophagic lipid degradation
Jing Lu1, Zhuoqun Meng1, Yan Chen1
1Department of Food Quality and Safety, College of Food Science and Engineering, Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin 130062, P. R. China. gshuang1973@126.com.
Abstract:
Apigenin, as a natural flavonoid, has been proved to have many biological effects. Our previous research has found the antiadipogenic effects of apigenin on HepG2 cells. Autophagy is intimately associated with the metabolism of lipid droplets (LDs) and is considered to be one of the lipid breakdown pathways. However, there is no study to elucidate the lipid-lowering mechanism of apigenin from the perspective of autophagy. Here, we investigated the possible role of apigenin in autophagy and lipid accumulation in palmitic acid (PA)-induced HepG2 cells. Our results showed that apigenin increased autophagosome formation and the LC3-II/I ratio, but decreased the p-mTOR/mTOR ratio and P62 protein expression. The effects of apigenin were blocked by chloroquine (CQ). Likewise, apigenin significantly stimulated autophagic flux in the cytoplasm. This effect also could be blocked by CQ. Moreover, apigenin decreased the lipid content and co-localization of LDs with LC3, and CQ could block these effects. Thus, we proposed that apigenin induced autophagy and stimulated autophagic lipid degradation in PA-treated HepG2 cells.
More Related Videos
09:34The Lactate Dehydrogenase Sequestration Assay — A Simple and Reliable Method to Determine Bulk Autophagic Sequestration Activity in Mammalian Cells
Published on: July 27, 2018
08:07Evaluating Autophagy Levels in Two Different Pancreatic Cell Models Using LC3 Immunofluorescence
Published on: April 28, 2023
Related Concept Videos
Autophagy
An autophagic pathway consists of a series of signaling events activated in response to diverse stress and physiological conditions such as food deprivation,...
Autophagic Cell Death
Autophagy and Apoptosis
Autophagy can activate apoptosis. In normal conditions, the autophagy activating protein Beclin-1 and...
Delivery Pathways to the Lysosome
Endocytosis
In endocytosis, the cell membrane takes up macromolecules and particles from the surrounding medium. Clathrin-mediated...
Phagocytosis of Apoptotic Cells
Normal cells contain receptors that prevent them from being recognized...
The Intrinsic Apoptotic Pathway
PI3K/mTOR/AKT Signaling Pathway