PPARα signaling is activated by cocoa in mouse liver

In this study we evaluated in mouse liver the effects of cocoa on PPARα signaling. To this aim, mouse diet was supplemented with 10%, w/w, cocoa for one and two weeks. We quantified the expression of PPARα target genes and PPARα gene level and some parameters related to PPARα activation (hepatosomatic index, peroxisomal β-oxidation system and catalase activity). Moreover, we evaluated antioxidant capacity of cocoa by detecting the expression of CAT and SOD1 genes (known to be involved in oxidative balance) and hypolipidemic properties on serum triglycerides. We made a parallel treatment with 0.025%, w/w, ciprofibrate, a well-known PPARα activator, to quantify signal modulation by cocoa. It is known that PPARα activation by ciprofibrate is mediated by direct binding to the receptor and strongly induces expression of target genes. Our results show that cocoa weakly up-regulates PPARα target genes as a consequence of the modulation of the PPARα gene level and does not improve the triglyceride profile in blood. Finally, cocoa increased SOD1 gene expression suggesting an antioxidant effect.