Green banana flour supplementation improves obesity-associated systemic inflammation and regulates gut microbiota profile. - GreenMedInfo Summary

This study evaluated the effect of green banana flour (GBF) consumption on obesity-related conditions in mice fed high-fat diets. GBF was prepared using stage 1 green banana pulp, which was dehydrated and milled. Mice were fed a control diet (n=20; 10% of energy from lipids) or a high-fat diet (n=20; 50% of energy from lipids). After 10 weeks, mice were divided into four groups based on feed: standard chow (n=10, "SC"), standard with 15% GBF (n=10, "SB"), high-fat diet (n=10, "HF") and high-fat diet with 15% GBF (n=10, "HFB") for 4 weeks. HFB exhibited lower gains in body weight (-21%; p<0.01) and in all fat pads (p<0.01) compared with the HF group. SC, SB, and HFB showed smaller retroperitoneal white adipose tissue diameters (p<0.001). SB and HFB-treated mice showed lower levels of leptin, IL-6, and TNF-α compared with the SC and HF groups (p<0.01). In the GBF-fed groups, there was a reduction in the abundance of Firmicutes (SB: -22%; HFB: -23%) and an increase in Bacteroidetes (SB: +25%; HFB: +29%) compared to their counterparts. We demonstrated that GBF consumption attenuated inflammation and improved metabolic status, adipose tissue remodeling, and the gut microbiota profile of obese mice. Novelty• Green banana flour (GBF) consumption, rich in resistant starch, regulates body weight in mice fed high-fat diets • GBF consumption improves fat pad distribution in mice fed high-fat diets • GBF improves obesity-associated systemic inflammation and regulates gut microbiota profile in mice fedhigh-fat diets.