ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Nutr.
Sec. Nutrition and Metabolism
This article is part of the Research TopicFunctional Foods and Bioactive Compounds in the Prevention of Type 2 DiabetesView all articles
ASTAXANTHIN ALLEVIATES ALTERED HEPATIC LIPID METABOLISM AND OXIDATIVE STRESS IN ANIMALS FED A HIGH-SUCROSE DIET
Provisionally accepted
Matias Rodrigo Vargas1
María del Rosario Ferreira1,2
Paola Ingaramo1
Pablo Collins1,2
María Eugenia Guadalupe D'Alessandro1,2*- 1Universidad Nacional del Litoral Facultad de Bioquimica y Ciencias Biologicas, Santa Fe, Argentina
- 2National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
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The aim of the present study was to analyze the effects of an Astaxanthin (ASTX)-rich extract- a powerful antioxidant- obtained from freshwater crustaceans (Dilocarcinus pagei crabs) on liver disturbed lipid metabolism and oxidative stress in rats fed a high-sucrose diet (HSD). Male Wistar rats were fed for 13 weeks with either: 1- a standard commercial rodent diet (RD), 2-a HSD, 3- a RD plus ASTX, or 4- a HSD plus ASTX. The rats were given orally either ASTX (10 mg/kg body weight/day in sunflower oil) or only the vehicle. ASTX supplementation attenuated liver injury, as reflected by a reduction in steatosis severity and hepatic triglyceride accumulation. This effect appears to be primarily achieved by promoting mitochondrial fatty acid β-oxidation, as suggested by increased hepatic carnitine palmitoyltransferase-1 (CPT-1) activity, without significantly affecting lipogenesis. In addition, ASTX improved intracellular redox status by preventing the increase in hepatic reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and by promoting a significant increase in the activity of the antioxidant enzymes catalase (CAT) and glutathione S-transferase (GST). ASTX was also able to restore altered GSH levels. Furthermore, ASTX induced an up-regulation of Nrf2 and a down-regulation of p-NFκB p65 protein expression, key transcription factors that govern cellular responses under pro-oxidant and pro-inflammatory conditions. In conclusion, this study suggests that ASTX obtained from the freshwater crustacean D. pagei exerts beneficial effects against altered hepatic lipid metabolism and oxidative stress in HSD-fed rats, positioning this species as a promising novel source of ASTX for functional nutrition strategies.
Keywords: astaxanthin, Freshwater crab, High-sucrose diet, Lipid Metabolism, Oxidative Stress, steatotic liver disease
Received: 05 Jan 2026; Accepted: 11 Feb 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Vargas, Ferreira, Ingaramo, Collins and D'Alessandro. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: María Eugenia Guadalupe D'Alessandro
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