Fig 4. Effect of the extract on mRNA expression of leptin (A) and adiponectin (B), and adipokine secretion (C–D).

The berry fruit extract (BFE) was added to the 3T3-L1 cell cultures at each stage of differentiation process at concentrations of 25, 50 and 100 μg/mL. The expression levels of LEP and ADIPOQ genes were quantified by real-time PCR and normalized using β-actin as an internal control. Leptin and adiponectin concentrations were determined in the cell culture supernatants. Data are the mean values ± SD (n = 3). ^ap < 0.05, ^bp < 0.01, ^cp < 0.001 (Tukey’s post hoc test).