There is public concern regarding the physical and mental problems of obesity. Even the social well-being of an individual can be affected by being overweight or obese, as obese people are more uncomfortable with their body imagery [13]. There have been numerous studies on the cure of obesity, including the classical dietary and physical activity methods. Recently, attention has been drawn toward molecular interventions such as growth differentiation factor-15 [14], glucagon-like peptide-1 co-agonists [15], and some herbal medicines. Many studies have targeted alterations in the microbiota and even the application of bacteriocins [9], and as using bacteriocins is a pretty novel approach to weight protection, we decided to explore this option.
Previous studies on bacteriocins have mainly focused on their antibacterial properties and their potential application as food preservatives. For instance, the antibacterial properties of nisin have been widely studied, and it has been extensively used, alone or in combination with other substances, as a food preservative [16]. Accordingly, some studies have evaluated the potential toxic effects of nisin, but only the oral route of administration has been used, and these studies have mainly supported the safety of this peptide as a food preservative, which led to its approval by the Food and Drug Administration. However, there is no information regarding the potential therapeutic effect of nisin against obesity. Our team first conducted a pilot study using nisin in laboratory rats and the results showed a significant decrease in the adipose content of the abdominal area (unpublished results). We, therefore, decided to use it in our study to evaluate its possible weight-changing effects.
Our results suggest significant weight loss in animals treated with nisin via i.p. injection. Although a significant reduction in food intake was only seen in one of the treatment groups, food-intake reduction can be considered as one of the mechanisms by which nisin exerts its effect on weight reduction. A similar result of decreased food intake was seen in a study determining the biological activity of nisin as a food additive [17].
In this study, nisin caused a dramatic decline in the level of SCD-1 expression. Stearoyl CoA desaturase-1 is a rate-limiting enzyme in the production of palmitoleic and oleic acids, two important monounsaturated fatty acids that are produced in the liver. The gene for SCD-1 is suppressed by leptin and the suppression of SCD-1 can lead to a considerable loss of weight in people affected by obesity [18]. A study in high fat-fed rats showed that obesity-prone rats have a higher proportion of the SCD-1 product, palmitoleic acid [19]. Consistently, in the present study, the body weight, amounts of abdominal fat content, and BMI were significantly lower in the animals that received nisin. These findings suggest that nisin could impose a significant reduction in adiposity and body weight in vivo. However, treatment with nisin did not affect the concentrations of serum triglyceride and cholesterol, suggesting that the most noticeable effect of nisin is on the fat tissue, rather than serum factors. According to the present results, nisin may exert its weight-protecting effect, at least partly, via reducing food intake. It is noteworthy that the high level of SCD-1 expression and subsequently higher levels of monounsaturated fatty acids have also been related to higher cancer death in patients affected by obesity [20], conferring more benefits to the use of nisin as a health-protective agent.
In this study, treatment with nisin caused a significant reduction in the expression of the GLUT4 gene which encodes the main transporter of glucose into adipocytes and skeletal muscle cells. The expression of GLUT4 is reduced in adipocytes (but not skeletal muscle cells) in type II diabetes mellitus (T2D) [21]. Impairment in the uptake of glucose by GLUT4 is the primary stage in the onset of T2D. Although the expression of GLUT4 was reduced in the animals, we did not observe any impairment in either fasting blood sugar, suggesting that at least in a period of 8 weeks, nisin does not increase the risk of diabetes.
Inflammation is a key element in the onset and development of insulin resistance in T2D. To preliminary evaluate the effect of nisin on the inflammatory response of the adipose tissue, we assayed the level of TNF-α expression in the adipose samples. It is generally accepted that the serum level of TNF-α is mildly increased in people affected by obesity. What’s more, the adipose tissue obtained from people affected by obesity has higher levels of mRNA for TNF-α. Increased levels of TNF-α reduce the uptake of glucose via GLUT4 by adipocytes [22]. TNF-α stimulates the death of hepatocytes and the progression of fatty liver disease. A reduction in the inflammation of adipose tissue in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) improves the condition of the liver [23]. In the present study, nisin caused a significant and dramatic reduction in the level of expression of TNF-α in adipose tissue, and thus seems to be beneficial from this point of view. However, more experiments are necessary to further evaluate this effect.
Zinc finger protein-423 (zfp423) is a key regulator in the differentiation and maturity of pre-adipocytes. The expression of this protein in pre-adipocytes leads to an increase in the cellular amounts of PPARγ, and this can lead to the differentiation of adipocytes [24]. Deletion of zfp423 predisposes the white adipocytes to enter the path of beige fat cells, and this can reverse diet-induced obesity. The thermogenic program initiator in beige adipocytes, Ebf2, is suppressed by the activation of zfp423, which leads to the maintenance of the white adipocyte destiny [25]. Nisin did not change the level of expression of zfp423 significantly in our experiment. This might be an indicator that probably nisin does not have any significant effects on the fate of adipocytes, but just reduces the amount of fat accumulation in these cells through repressing SCD-1 and probably some other yet-unknown mechanisms.
Adipocyte protein 422ap2 is expressed after the induction of adipose-specific genes C/EBPβ, C/EBPα, and PPARγ. This protein is representative of adipocytes [26]. The expression level of 422ap2 was dramatically reduced in the cells treated with nisin, which is an indicator of reduced adiposity. Generally speaking, since 422ap2 is not a fate determiner, we could say that the adipose tissue keeps its identity as a tissue, however, its capacity for producing and storing fat is reduced.
In this study, treatment with nisin increased the number of blood neutrophils but had no significant effects on other white blood cells. Neutrophilic leukocytosis, which is an increase in the number of circulating neutrophils, may be triggered by the introduction of bacterial products such as peptides into the bloodstream [27]. Since nisin is a bacterial peptide, such an increase is predictable.
We also performed a preliminary study on some potential side effects of parenterally injected nisin on the animals. Regarding the lack of previous studies, some routine screening tests were employed to monitor the general health status of the mice. It is noteworthy that previous reports on the possible adverse effects of nisin, as a food supplement, are conflicting. While some studies report no adverse effect for supplementary nisin [17, 28], there are reports indicating weight loss and decreased food intake in laboratory animals [29]. Since there is no information regarding the bioavailability of nisin and whether it is absorbed from the intestine, the results of these studies may not be extrapolatable to the present study in which nisin has been parenterally injected to the animals.
Diabetes mellitus is a destructive metabolic condition characterized by constant elevation of blood glucose levels, and FBS is a significant marker in predicting diabetes, even more reliable than HbA1c [30]. We did not observe any significant changes in the FBS level following 8 weeks of treatment with nisin, suggesting no deteriorating effects on the ability of the body to manage glucose levels.
One of the major causes of death in modern societies is atherosclerosis, and high serum cholesterol is one of the main risk factors in this regard [31]. In addition to cardiovascular diseases, an increased cholesterol level has been associated with Parkinson’s disease [32] and some neural conditions such as cerebral amyloidosis [33]. Nisin caused no changes in the levels of serum cholesterol, suggesting no related harmful effects under the studied conditions.
High levels of triglyceride, low levels of HDL, and high levels of LDL are indicators of potential cardiovascular risk [34]. There is also some evidence of a connection between the levels of these serum markers and the risk of some types of cancer [35]. Nisin did not cause any significant changes in the serum concentrations of these factors in this experiment.
One of the most important safety concerns of any therapeutic agent is its liver toxicity. The two enzymes AST and ALT are used to determine damage to the liver [36]. We did not see any changes in the levels of either enzyme, denoting that nisin may not be hepatotoxic.
The red and white blood cell counts, the concentration of haemoglobin, and the factors denoting anaemia (such as MCV and MCH) all remained normal during the experiment, suggesting that nisin may not exert negative effects on the general health condition.