Monascin

Monascin is an azaphilonoid pigment that has been found in the fungus Monascus and has diverse biological activities.^1,2,3 It induces peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα) activity in a coactivator assay (IC₅₀ = 2,038 nM) and inhibits oleic acid-induced fatty acid uptake, lipogenesis, and fatty acid oxidation in FL83B mouse hepatocytes.¹ In vivo, monascin reduces hepatic IL-6, TNF-α, and TGF-β levels, plasma levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides, free fatty acids, and alanine transaminase (ALT), and hepatic macrovesicular steatosis in a mouse model of high-fat diet-induced non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Monascin reduces the number of papillomas per mouse and the number of mice with papillomas in a mouse model of two-stage carcinogenesis induced by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (TPA; Item No. 10008014) and UVB or peroxynitrite when administered in the drinking water at a concentration of 0.0025%.² It also reduces serum insulin, triglyceride, total cholesterol, and HDL concentrations in a rat model of diabetes induced by streptozotocin (STZ; Item No. 13104).³

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1. Hsu, W.-H., Chen, T.-H., Lee, B.-H., et al. Monascin and ankaflavin act as natural AMPK activators with PPARα agonist activity to down-regulate nonalcoholic steatohepatitis in high-fat diet-fed C57BL/6 mice. Food Chem. Toxicol. 64, 94-103 (2014).

2. Akihisa, T., Tokuda, H., Ukiya, M., et al. Anti-tumor-initiating effects of monascin, an azaphilonoid pigment from the extract of Monascus pilosus fermented rice (red-mold rice). Chem. Biodivers. 2(10), 1305-1309 (2005).

3. Shi, Y.-C., Liao, V.H.-C., and Pan, T.-M. Monascin from red mold dioscorea as a novel antidiabetic and antioxidative stress agent in rats and Caenorhabditis elegans. Free Radic. Biol. Med. 52(1), 109-117 (2012).