Abstract: Objective To observe the changes of insulin sensitivity of flavonoids 4, 4'-dimethoxy chalcone (DMC) in mice fed on high-fat diet (HFD) and to investigate its effect. Methods Wild-type C57/BL 6 mice fed on HFD were divided into control group and experimental group. DMC and solvent DMSO were injected intraperitoneally at 3 μg/kg every other day. Food intake and body weight of the two groups were recorded weekly, glucose tolerance test (GTT), insulin tolerance test (ITT) and sodium pyruvate tolerance test(PTT) were measured at week 6. The adipose tissues were examined by immunohistochemistry and HE staining. Results Compared with the control mice, the mice treated with DMC drug was no different in body weight and food intake. ITT indicated that DMC administration increased insulin sensitivity (P＜0.05), but GTT and PTT showed no significant difference. HE staining microscopy showed that adipose tissue contained less mononuclear cells in mice treated with DMC than control mice. There was weak staining for F4/80 in the adipose tissue of mice treated with DMC, defined as F4/80-positive cells. Conclusions DMC can improve the insulin sensitivity of mice in high-fat diet by decreasing the infiltration of macrophages in adipose tissue.

Key words: 4, 4'-dimethoxy chalcone(DMC), inflammation of adipose tissue, insulin sensitivity