Obesity is caused by excessive accumulation of body fat and is closely related to complex metabolic diseases. Adipogenesis is a key process that is required in adipocyte hypertrophy in the development of obesity. Curcumin (Cur) has been reported to inhibit adipocyte differentiation, but the inhibitory effects of other curcuminoids present in turmeric, such as demethoxycurcumin (DMC) and bisdemethoxycurcumin (BDMC), on adipogenesis have not been investigated. Here, we investigated the effects of curcuminoids on adipogenesis and the molecular mechanisms of adipocyte differentiation. Among three curcuminoids, BDMC was the most effective suppressor of lipid accumulation in adipocytes. BDMC suppressed adipogenesis in the early stage primarily through attenuation of mitotic clonal expansion (MCE). In BDMC-treated preadipocytes, cell cycle arrest at the G0/G1 phase was found after initiation of adipogenesis and was accompanied by downregulation of cyclin A, cyclin B, p21, and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling. The protein levels of the adipogenic transcription factors peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)γ and CCAAT/enhancer-binding proteins (C/EBP)α were also reduced by BDMC treatment. Furthermore, 0.5% dietary BDMC (w/w) significantly lowered body weight gain and adipose tissue mass in high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice. The results of H&E staining showed that dietary BDMC reduced hypertrophy in adipocytes. These results demonstrate for the first time that BDMC suppressed adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 adipocytes and prevented HFD-induced obesity. Our results suggest that BDMC has the potential to prevent obesity.

Background: Pulmonary sequestrations often lead to serious complications such as infections, tuberculosis, fatal hemoptysis, cardiovascular problems, and even malignant degeneration, but it is rarely documented with medium and large vessel vasculitis, which is likely to result in acute aortic syndromes.Case presentation: A 44-year-old man with a history of acute Stanford type A aortic dissection status post-reconstructive surgery five years ago. The contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) of the chest at that time had also revealed an intralobar pulmonary sequestration in the left lower lung region, and the angiography also presented perivascular changes with mild mural thickening and wall enhancement, which indicated mild vasculitis. The intralobar pulmonary sequestration in the left lower lung region was long-term unprocessed, which was probably associated with his intermittent chest tightness since no specific medical findings were detected but only positive sputum culture with mycobacterium avium-intracellulare complex and Aspergillus. We performed uniportal video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery with wedge resection of the left lower lung. Hypervascularity over the parietal pleura, engorgement of the bronchus due to a moderate amount of mucus, and firm adhesion of the lesion to the thoracic aorta were histopathologically noticed.Conclusion: We hypothesized that a long-term pulmonary sequestration-related bacterial and fungal infection can result in focal infectious aortitis gradually, which may threateningly contribute to aortic dissection.