Abstract:
The Philippine teak (Tectona philippinensis Benth. & Hook.f.) is a critically endangered plant endemic to the Philippines, primarily used for lumber manufacturing. Studying other possible use of this plant which do not require felling may help in its conservation. With this, the methanolic crude leaf extract (MCLE) from the Philippine Teak was tested for its effect on mice fed with high-fat diet. Four-week old, male, ICR strain Mus musculus Linn. (n=20) were randomly divided into four groups after a 1-week acclimatization period: (1) mice fed with regular feeds (RF), (2) mice fed with high-fat diet (HFD), (3) mice fed with high-fat diet and 1% plant extract (HFDPE), and (4) mice fed with high-fat diet and 0.5% orlistat 120mg (HFDO). They were fed accordingly for four weeks, having their weight (in g.) and naso-anal length (in mm.) being recorded weekly. After the treatment period, the mice were sacrificed and dissected for extraction of their gonadal fat pads. The groups were compared based on three parameters namely: Lee Obesity Index (g0.33/mm), weight of gonadal fat pad, and adipocyte size. Significant differences were observed between the average Lee obesity index (p=0.000) and the adipocyte size (p=0.050) of the HFD and HFDPE groups. These evidences imply that the MCLE from Philippine Teak has a protective effect against the occurrence of obesity. It must be noted, however, that there was no significant difference observed between the weight of the gonadal fat pad (p=0.222) of the HFD and HFDPE groups.
