Anti-obesity effects of a rice bran extract in 3T3-L1 adipocytes and high-fat diet-induced obese mice

This study evaluated the anti-obesity effects of a rice bran extract (RBE). In 3T3-L1 adipocytes, RBE (50-100 µg/mL) significantly reduced triglyceride accumulation. RBE also attenuated ACC expression at 100 µg/mL, increased ATGL expression at 50 µg/mL, and restored PGC-1α expression at 100 µg/mL. In high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese mice, oral administration of RBE (200 mg/kg) for 12 weeks significantly suppressed body weight gain and feed efficiency ratio without altering food intake. Furthermore, RBE markedly reduced epididymal white adipose tissue mass and adipocyte size, mitigating HFD-induced hypertrophy. Serum and hepatic lipid parameters were not significantly altered, suggesting RBE mainly affected adipose tissue expansion under the present experimental conditions. These findings suggest that RBE has anti-obesity potential, particularly through the attenuation of adipocyte lipid accumulation and HFD-induced adipose tissue expansion.

The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1007/s10068-026-02268-9.