Banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO: EMILLY GUEDES OLIVEIRA E SILVA

Uma banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO de MESTRADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : EMILLY GUEDES OLIVEIRA E SILVA
DATE: 06/03/2026
TIME: 14:30
LOCAL: Sessão pública realizada por meio de videoconferência
TITLE:

Effects of trypsin inhibitor isolated from tamarind seeds (Tamarindus indica L.) on visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissue: a preclinical evaluation

KEY WORDS:

Obesity. Inflammation. Adipocytes. Protease Inhibitors.

PAGES: 60
BIG AREA: Ciências da Saúde
AREA: Nutrição
SUMMARY:

Obesity is a chronic non-communicable disease (NCD), and the increase in its prevalence and mortality rates is a concern for health authorities worldwide. Studies investigating the effects of the trypsin inhibitor isolated from tamarind seeds (Tamarindus indica L.) (TTI), focusing on the treatment of this disease, are relevant because this molecule shows strong anti-obesity potential. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of TTI on visceral white adipose tissue (vWAT) and brown adipose tissue (BAT) in mice with diet-induced obesity. Initially, the processes of extraction, isolation, and characterization of TTI were carried out. Subsequently, an experiment was conducted using C57BL/6 mice (n = 60). The animals were initially divided into two groups: one group received a standard diet (CS, n = 20), and the other received a high-fat diet (HFS, n = 40) for 12 weeks. After this period, the group that received the standard diet was randomly divided into two groups: healthy animals fed a standard diet without treatment (CS, n = 10) and healthy animals fed a standard diet treated with TTI (CI, n = 10). The group that consumed the high-fat diet was randomly divided into four groups: obese animals without treatment (HFS, n = 10), obese animals treated with a standard diet (HFD, n = 10), obese animals treated with TTI (HFI, n = 10), and obese animals treated with TTI combined with a standard diet (HFDI, n = 10). The treated groups received 0.3 mL of TTI solution at a concentration of 25 mg/kg by gavage once daily for 14 days. The mice were anesthetized and euthanized, and blood was collected for biochemical analyses. Visceral and brown fat depots were collected for histological analyses. In addition, gene expression analysis of Il-6, Mcp-1, Tnf-α, Atf4, Chop, and Gadd45 is being conducted using real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). Statistical analysis of the data was performed after the experiments. From the analyses performed, the electrophoresis gel showed a characteristic band at approximately 20 kDa and exhibited 99.07% (1819.44 IU/mg) inhibition against trypsin, demonstrating the isolation of TTI. Regarding treatment, animals in the HFD and HFDI groups showed a significant reduction in body mass after this period (p < 0,05). Moreover, the mean fasting plasma glucose concentrations differed significantly among the groups (ANOVA, p = 0,001). The post hoc test indicated significant differences between the CI and HFS groups, as well as between the HFS and HFD groups, highlighting the effect of TTI in healthy animals. Histological analysis of adipose tissue showed that treatment with TTI and TTI combined with diet improved adipocyte hypertrophy and cell volume in vWAT. Furthermore, treatment with TTI and TTI combined with diet demonstrated improvement of BAT whitening. Thus, the results indicate the potential of TTI in reducing body mass, improving glycemia, and promoting morphofunctional restructuring of brown and visceral adipose tissue in an experimental model of obesity.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Presidente - 2578619 - ANA HELONEIDA DE ARAUJO MORAIS
Interna - 3218336 - BRUNA ZAVARIZE REIS
Externa à Instituição - FABIANE FERREIRA MARTINS - UFRN
Externa à Instituição - MAYARA SANTA ROSA LIMA - UFRB