Aloe vera gel extract attenuates ethanol-induced hepatic lipid accumulation by suppressing the expression of lipogenic genes in mice.

We have previously reported that Aloe vera gel had hypoglycemic activity and anti-obesity effects, although the effect on alcoholic fatty liver was unclear. We examined in this present study the effect of an Aloe vera gel extract (AVGE) on hepatic lipid metabolism by using an ethanol-induced transient fatty liver mouse model. Ethanol (3 g/kg of mouse weight) was orally administered to induce an accumulation of triglyceride (TG) and increase the mRNA expression of such lipogenic genes as sterol regulatory element-binding protein-1 (SREBP-1) and fatty acid synthase (FASN) in the liver. Although ethanol ingestion caused a 5.4-fold increase in liver TG, pre-treating with AVGE (1 mg/kg/d) for 1 week significantly suppressed this elevation of the ethanol-induced liver TG level. The expression of lipogenic genes was also lower in the AVGE pre-treatment group than in the control group. This inhibitory effect on the ethanol-induced accumulation of TG was attributed to a reduction in the expression of lipogenic genes that were increased by ethanol.