Birch bark may contain healing benefits

SHANGHAI, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- An ingredient in birch bark may have an array of metabolic benefits, researchers in Shanghai say.

Researchers at Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, led by Bao-Liang Song, found the compound -- betulin -- affected sterol regulatory element-binding proteins involved in the biosynthesis of cholesterol, fatty acids and triglycerides that are known as SREBPs.

"Our study shows that the SREBP pathway is a good target for several metabolic diseases," Song said in a statement.

The animal study, published in Cell Metabolism, found betulin helped lower cholesterol, prevent obesity, and improve insulin sensitivity in mice. The betulin-treated mice were also more resistant to developing atherosclerotic plaques in their arteries.

Song and colleagues gave betulin, the cholesterol-lowering statin lovastatin, or a placebo to mice fed a high-fat, Western diet, for six weeks. Compared to placebo, the researchers found both betulin and lovastatin led the mice to gain less weight on the high-fat diet, but by different means.

Betulin caused the animals to burn more calories while lovastatin seemed to reduce the amount of fat taken up from the diet, Song said.