Background: Soybean is termed a functional food because it contains bioactive compounds. However, its effects are not well known under unbalanced diet conditions. This work is aimed at evaluating the effect of adding whole soy flour to a cafeteria diet on intestinal histomorphometry, metabolic risk and toxicity markers in rats. Methods: In this study, 30 male adult Wistar rats were used, distributed among three groups (n = 10): AIN-93 M diet, cafeteria diet (CAF) and cafeteria diet with soy flour (CAFS), for 56 days. The following parameters were measured: food intake; weight gain; serum concentrations of triglycerides, total cholesterol, HDL-c, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), aspartate (AST) and alanine (ALT) aminotransferases and Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances (TBARS); humidity and lipid fecal content; weight and fat of the liver. The villous height, the crypt depth and the thickness of the duodenal and ileal circular and longitudinal muscle layers of the animals were also measured. Results: There was a significant reduction in the food intake in the CAF group. The CAFS showed lower serum concentrations of triglycerides and serum TBARS and a lower percentage of hepatic fat, with a corresponding increase in thickness of the intestinal muscle layers. In the CAF group, an increase in the HbA1c, ALT, lipid excretion, liver TBARS and crypt depth, was observed associated with lower HDL-c and villous height. The addition of soy did not promote any change in these parameters. Conclusions: The inclusion of whole soy flour in a high-fat diet may be helpful in reducing some markers of metabolic risk; however, more studies are required to clarify its effects on unbalanced diets.

Background: Adipose tissue is involved in several metabolic changes. This study investigated the association between the fatty acid (FA) composition of subcutaneous (SAT) and visceral (VAT) adipose tissue pre-surgery and the postsurgical response regarding the evolution of weight and concentrations of tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF) and interleukin 6 (IL-6) in adult women who underwent Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB, n = 14) or sleeve gastrectomy (SG, n = 19) at one (T1), three (T3) and six (T6) years after surgery. Methods: Blood samples were collected to obtain plasma for the measurement of IL-6 and TNF. Anthropometric measurements were performed, collecting samples of VAT and SAT during surgery to assess the FA profiles. Results: Weight loss had a positive correlation with the percentage of VAT-C17:0 (T1, T3) and SAT-C18:2 (T1, T3, T6), and it had a negative correlation with SAT-C22:0 (T1, T3) and VAT-C22:0 (T3). Regarding the inflammatory response, SAT-C14:0 (T6), VAT-C14:0 (T6), SAT-C14:1 (baseline), SAT-C15:0 (T6), SAT-C16:1 (T6), VAT-C16:1 (baseline), SAT-C17:1 (T6), VAT-C17:1 (baseline), VAT-C18:1 (T6), and VAT-C20:1 (T6) exhibited positive correlations with the concentration of IL-6, which were different from the correlations of IL-6 concentrations with SAT-C18:2, VAT-C18:2 (T6), and VAT-C18:3 (T6). The FA SAT-C18:0 (T1) was negatively correlated with TNF concentrations. Conclusions: Saturated FAs were predominantly proinflammatory, primarily in the late postoperative period. Alternately, the polyunsaturated FAs exhibited anti-inflammatory potential and predicted weight loss. Thus, the FA profile of the adipose tissue of obese adult women may be a predictor of the ponderal and inflammatory response 6 years after bariatric surgery. Trial registration: This study was approved by the ethics committee of Federal University of Viçosa; Registration n. 17287913.2.0000.5153; Date: 07/05/2013.

Background/Objectives: Dysregulated lipolysis contributes to adipose tissue dysfunction in obesity. Ginkgo biloba extract (GbE) influences adipose metabolism, but its effects across adipose models remain unclear. We evaluated GbE effects on lipolytic activity in murine and human models. Methods: Differentiated 3T3-L1 and hWA A41 adipocytes, primary adipocytes from one individual with obesity, and human visceral adipose tissue explants from individuals with overweight or obesity were exposed to GbE (1.00 mg/mL, 48 h). Lipolytic activity was assessed by glycerol release. Plin1, Pnpla2, and Lipe expression, ATGL and pHSL abundance, and MTT-based metabolic activity were evaluated. Results: GbE increased basal glycerol release nearly fivefold in 3T3-L1 adipocytes (p = 0.0045) and by 26.3% in hWA A41 cells (p = 0.0007). GbE reduced Plin1 (p = 0.0182) and Lipe (p = 0.0027) expression, while Pnpla2 remained unchanged. In hWA A41 cells, pHSL increased (p = 0.0459), while ATGL was unchanged. MTT-based metabolic activity increased at 1.00 mg/mL but decreased at higher concentrations. A descriptive 35% reduction in glycerol release was observed in primary adipocytes from one donor. GbE reduced glycerol release by approximately 45% in visceral adipose tissue explants from individuals with obesity, with no significant change in overweight. Conclusions: GbE produced distinct effects across adipose models, increasing lipolytic activity in adipocyte cell lines while reducing glycerol release in visceral adipose tissue explants from individuals with obesity, with a directionally similar reduction descriptively observed in primary adipocytes. These preliminary findings warrant further mechanistic and in vivo studies.