본 연구에서는 상백피의 소화효소 저해활성과 3T3-L1 전지방세포의 분화 억제능을 기반으로 항비만 효능소재로 서의 활용가능성을 평가하였다. 상백피의 에탄올 추출물 (MRE)은 α-amylase와 α-glucosidase, pancreatic lipase를 활 용한 소화효소 저해활성 평가 실험에서 각각 7.86±0.36, 0.12±0.03, 7.93±0.11 mg/mL 의 IC50 값을 보이며 우수한 억제 활성을 나타냈다. 또한 3T3-L1 전지방세포를 활용한 세포분화억제효능실험에서 MRE 처리군의 세포내 지방 축 적율은 농도 의존적으로 감소되었다. 상백피의 항비만 작 용 기전을 구명하기 위하여 adipogenesis 및 lipogenesis와 관련된 유전자 발현양상을 분석한 결과, 상백피 추출물 처 리군에서는 생체내 지방대사 조절에 중요한 역할을 하는 FAS와 ACC 뿐 아니라 adipogenesis와 lipogenesis와 관련된 주요 전사요소인 PPARγ와 C/EBPα, SREBP-1c의 유전자 발현이 현저하게 억제되었다. qRT-PCR 분석 결과, 상백피 추출물의 anti-adipogenesis 효능은 전사단계에서의 관련 유 전자 발현억제에 기인한다고 판단되었다. 본 실험결과 상 백피 추출물은 전지방세포의 분화와 세포내 지질합성을 저해하고 비만과 관련 된 소화효소에 대한 저해활성을 나타 내었다. 이러한 결과를 기반으로 상백피의 비만 예방 소재 로서의 잠재적인 가능성을 확인하였다.

Anti-obese effects of mulberry (Morus alba L.) root bark was investigated in vitro by measuring its inhibitory effect against 3T3-L1 preadipocyte differentiation and digestive enzymes such as α-amylase, α-glucosidase and pancreatic lipase. Ethanol extract of mulberry root bark (MRE) showed the potent inhibitory activities on α-amylase, α-glucosidase and pancreatic lipase with IC50 values of 7.86±0.36, 0.12±0.03 and 7.93±0.11 mg/mL, respectively. Furthermore, MRE significantly suppressed cellular lipid accumulation in 3T3-L1 cells in a dose-dependent manner. To elucidate the mechanism of MRE, we performed qRT-PCR and Western blotting for the expression of genes related with adipogenesis and lipogenesis. Treatment of MRE markedly suppressed the protein expression of PPARγ, C/EBPα and SREBP-1c, as well as FAS and ACC, which are the key transcription factors and metabolic enzymes in adipogenesis and lipogenesis. In addition, qRT-PCR analysis indicated that the anti-adipogenesis effect of MRE might be due to its inhibition at transcription levels. These results demonstrate that MRE can effectively suppress adipocyte differentiation and inhibit key enzymes related to obesity. Our findings suggest that mulberry root bark may have a potential benefit in preventing obesity.

Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and methods
  Materials
  Preparation of mulberry root bark extracts
  Digestive enzymes inhibitory assays
  Cell culture and adipocyte differentiation
  Cell viability assay
  Oil red O staining
  Western blotting analysis
  RNA extraction and qRT-PCR
  Statistical analysis
 Results and Discussion
  Effect of mulberry root bark extracts on pancreatic lipase activity
  Effect of mulberry root bark extracts on adipogenic differentiation in 3T3-L1 cells
  Effects of MRE on adipogenesis and lipogenesis gene expressions in 3T3-L1 cells
 Conclusion
 요 약
 Acknowledgement
 References

• Yong-Xiang Wu(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Andong National University, Andong 760-749, Korea) | 우용시앙
• You-Jeong Kim(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Andong National University, Andong 760-749, Korea) | 김유정
• Sha Li(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Andong National University, Andong 760-749, Korea) | 리샤
• Myung-Chul Yun(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Andong National University, Andong 760-749, Korea) | 윤명철
• Jin-Mi Yoon(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Andong National University, Andong 760-749, Korea) | 윤진미
• Jin-Young Kim(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Andong National University, Andong 760-749, Korea) | 김진영
• Sung-Il Cho(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Andong National University, Andong 760-749, Korea) | 조성일
• Kun-Ho Son(Department of Food and Nutrition, Andong National University, Andong 760-749, Korea) | 손건호
• Taewan Kim(Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, Andong National University, Andong 760-749, Korea) | 김태완 Corresponding author