Icariin and its metabolites regulate lipid metabolism: From effects to molecular mechanisms

• Main Authors: Miao Wang, Hongyan Gao, Weihong Li, Bin Wu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2020-11-01
• Series: Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy
• Subjects: Icariin; Metabolite; Lipid metabolism; Pharmacology; Molecular mechanism
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0753332220308684

Icariin has a variety of biological activities, such as lipid-lowering effects, and has attracted widespread attention in recent years. However, it is not clear whether lipid-lowering effect is that multiple metabolites or a particular component plays a major role. It is known that icariin has a variety of metabolites in the body, including icariside I, icariside II, icaritin, desmethylicaritin, and other metabolites. Many of these studies have shown that the metabolites of icariin have a lipid-lowering effect. This paper focuses on the lipid-regulating effects of icariin and its metabolites in vitro and in vivo, and highlights the mechanisms involved. Icariin may have potential in the development of therapeutic strategies to regulate lipid metabolism.