Abstract: Objective To investigate the inhibitory effects of tetramethoxystilbene, a selective CYP1B1 inhibitor, on adipogenic
differentiation of C3H10T1/2 multi-potent mesenchymal cells. Methods In vitro cultured C3H10T1/2 cells at full confluence
were induced by adipogenic agents (10 μg/ml insulin, 2 μmol/L dexamethasone and 0.5 mmol/L 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine)
and exposed simultaneously to TMS at the final concentrations of 1.0, 2.0 or 4.0 μg/ml. Oil Red-O staining was used to observe
the cell differentiation. The expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) and its target genes
cluster of differentiation 36 (CD36) and fatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP4) were quantified by real-time RT-PCR and Western
blotting. Results Oil Red-O staining and TG contents revealed that TMS suppressed induced differentiation of C3H10T1/2
cells. TMS exposure of the cells dose-dependently decreased both mRNA and protein expressions of PPARγ, a key nuclear
transcription factor during adipogenesis, and also lowered the mRNA expressions of PPARγ target genes CD36 and FABP4.
Conclusion TMS can suppress adipogenic differentiation of C3H10T1/2 cells by inhibiting PPARγ.