[Liuweidihuang pills reduces visceral fat deposition in Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty rats].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of Liuweidihuang pills (LP) on visceral fat deposition in Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rats. METHODS: Forty male OLETF rats were randomly divided into LP group and control group (n=20 per group), and 10 male Long-evans Tokushima Otsuka (LETO) rats were used as normal controls. The rats in LP group were given LP(2.4 mg/kg) daily by intragastric administration since the age of 8 weeks, and those in the other two groups were given water of the same volume by intragastric administration. Blood glucose of all the rats was determined by oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and visceral fat deposition examined after the rats were sacrificed. RESULTS: OLETF rats had obviously greater amount of visceral fat than LETO rats (P<0.05) and administration of LP ameliorated the increment of visceral fat deposition in this type 2 diabetic model, producing significant effect at the age of 40 weeks (P<0.01). CONCLUSION: LP may effectively decrease visceral fat deposition in OLETF rats.