Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) is an inflammatory chemokine up-regulated in obese subjects, contributing to the development of type 2 diabetes. The present study investigated the inhibitory effect of an ethanol–water extract from bamboo (BEX, Phyllostachys edulis) on the blood concentration of MCP-1. C57BL/6J mice were fed a standard diet or a high-fat diet with or without the BEX supplement (11 g dry mass/17 000 kJ) for 6 months. A total of ten mice were used in each group. Body weight and food consumption were measured weekly. After euthanisation, the weight of visceral fat and circulating MCP-1 concentration were measured. In comparison with the standard control group, the high-fat control group had increased body weight, abdominal fat storage and serum MCP-1 concentration by 60 % (P < 0·001), 266 % (P < 0·001) and 180 % (P < 0·01), respectively. In comparison with the high-fat control group, the high-fat BEX group showed a 3 % decrease in body weight (P < 0·01), 24 % decrease in mesenteric fat depot (P < 0·01) and 49 % decrease in serum MCP-1 concentration (P < 0·05). The present study suggests that the BEX supplement in the high-fat diet ameliorates elevated MCP-1 concentrations in the blood, and whether this is related to modulated endocrine properties of the visceral fat is to be studied.

The fatty acid composition and lipid content of white muscle, liver and mesenteric fat, in reared v. wild sharpsnout sea bream (Diplodus puntazzo) were compared. The mesenteric fat index (100×mesenteric fat weight/body weight) and the lipid contents of both white muscle and liver proved consistently higher in farmed v. wild sharpsnout sea bream (79·0 (SE 13·1) V. 38·7 (se 5·1) g/kg, 188·4 (se 30·0) v. 58·2 (se 3·9) g/kg and 27·2 (se 3·7) v. 17·3 (se 1·9) g/kg, respectively). The higher values of linoleic, eicosapentaenoic, docosahexaenoic and n-3 series acids in reared fish muscle make reared sharpsnout more favourable for human consumption. In reared fish mesenteric fat, polyunsaturated fatty acids reached higher levels (32·54 (se 0·71) g/100 g total fatty acids than those found in wild fish (26·08 (se 1·38) g/100 g total fatty acids or even present in the diet (28·34 g/100 g total fatty acids). Compared with cultured fish, wild sharpsnout displayed a higher content of n-3 fatty acids in liver fat (31·67 (se 1·13) g/100 g total fatty acids), but lower in mesenteric fat (20·35 (se 1·41) g/100 g total fatty acids). Atherogenic index values were similar for wild and reared fish in all tissues, while the index of thrombogenicity of muscle and mesenteric fat (0·353 (se 0·012) and 0·402 (se 0·021) respectively) was significantly increased in wild fish probably due to the omnivorous habits of the species and/or to seasonal food variations. Depending on the time of the year or the season, reared fish could be more suitable for human consumption than wild fish.