The Role of Thylakoids in Weight Management: A Review
The Role of Thylakoids in Weight Management: A Review
Sahar Foshati,1,*Maryam Ekramzadeh,2
1. Department of Clinical Nutrition, School of Nutrition and Food Science, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran 2. Department of Clinical Nutrition, School of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
Introduction: Overweight and obesity are major epidemic health problems that can bring about some other health issues such as cardiovascular disease, the first cause of mortality worldwide. Thylakoids are disc-like membranes responsible for photosynthetic light reactions in chloroplasts of green plants. In this article, we briefly described thylakoids and reviewed studies which have evaluated their impact on weight management and obesity-related factors. We also looked at the mechanisms of action of thylakoids.
Methods: Multiple databases including PubMed, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, Scopus, and Web of Science were searched using the following search terms: “thylakoids” and “obesity” or “overweight”. In PubMed, the above search terms were entered as both medical subject headings (MeSH) and text words.
Results: Although a limited number of animal and human studies have investigated the impact of thylakoids on overweight- and obesity-related factors, all of them have resulted in positive outcomes. These outcomes are as follows: increment of satiety response; suppression of hunger sensations, particularly hedonic hunger; reduction of body weight and fat; promotion of glucose homeostasis; decrease in serum lipids; attenuation of oxidative stress and inflammation; and modulation of gut microbiota, notably by increasing beneficial bacteria such as Lactobacillus reuteri. It seems that some of these useful effects are related to retarded absorption of dietary fat and carbohydrate caused by thylakoids.
Conclusion: To sum up, supplementation with thylakoids may have beneficial effects on weight management. Nevertheless, more well-designed studies are needed before a firm conclusion can be drawn.