Korean red ginseng (Panax ginseng) prevents obesity by inhibiting angiogenesis in high fat diet-induced obese C57BL/6J mice.

Adipose tissue growth and development are thought to be associated with angiogenesis and extracellular matrix remodeling. Because ginseng has been shown to inhibit angiogenesis and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) activity, we hypothesized that adipose tissue growth and obesity can be regulated by Korean ginseng (Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer). Wild-type C57BL/6J mice were fed for 8 weeks with a low fat diet, a high fat diet (HFD), or HFD supplemented with 0.5% or 5% Korean red ginseng extract. We measured body weight, adipose tissue mass, food intake, MMP activity, and the expression of genes involved in angiogenesis and MMPs. Administering ginseng to HFD-induced obese mice produced reductions in body weight and adipose tissue mass compared with untreated counterparts. Ginseng treatment decreased blood vessel density and MMP activity in adipose tissues. Ginseng also reduced mRNA levels of angiogenic factors (e.g., VEGF-A and FGF-2) and MMPs (e.g., MMP-2 and MMP-9), whereas it increased mRNA levels of angiogenic inhibitors (e.g., TSP-1, TIMP-1, and TIMP-2) in adipose tissues. These results demonstrate that ginseng effectively reduces adipose tissue mass and prevents obesity in diet-induced obese mice and that this process may be mediated in part through the anti-angiogenic actions of ginseng.