(NUTRIGOLD n.d)
(Amazon.com n.d)
Forskolin Gold™ is a herbal weight loss supplement produced by NUTRIGOLD. The product’s active ingredient is Coleus Forskohlii extract. According to NUTRIGOLD the active ingredient of Coleus Forskohlii, which is Forskolin, is what is responsible for the benefits provided by their product.
According to NUTRIGOLD the flowchart below represents the way in which Forskolin Gold™ works. (click image to enlarge)
As a Biochemist it is my duty to reveal the truth about Forskolin Gold™ to reveal the truth I must first discover the truth; to discover the truth I must look into the science, if there is any..because we all know that science is the truth (until disproved)
Before we jump right into this we need to know a few things about how the body stores and burns fat.
- Fat is stored in adipocytes
- Fat is stored as triacylglycerols (TAG)
- TAGs can be broken down to fatty acids which are released into the blood stream
- Free fatty acids may be used as energy
To uncover the truth we must ask ourselves the following questions (based on the claims made by NUTRIGOLD regarding the method of action of their drug):
1)Is there any biochemical basis to support the steps from Adenylate cyclase to cAMP?
2) What are the chain of biochemical events?
3)What are the metabolic process?
4)Is there anything NUTRIGOLD isn’t telling us?
Okay, let us begin!
#1 Is there any biochemical basis to support the steps from Adenylate cyclase to cAMP?
The following events are usually initiated when the body is in its “fasting” state, i.e, when the blood glucose level is low, i.e, when glycogen stores have been depleted
–> Pancreas detects low blood glucose levels
–> Levels of adipocyte triglyceride lipase (ATGL)/desnutrin in adipocytes increase (King 2013)
–>Alpha cells (of pancreas) secretes glucagon
–>Glucagon binds to its receptors on the cell membrane of adipocytes (King 2014)
–>Binding activates G-protein (King 2014)
–>G-protein activates adenylate cyclase (King 2014)
–>Adeylate cyclase uses ATP to produce cAMP (King 2014)
The above events are a synopsis of the natural biochemical events which leads to the production of cAMP.
In order to produce cAMP and have the desired effects, that means that Forskolin must have a binding site of its own or it must have the same shape as glucagon or epinephrine in order to fit into their receptors and have that effect.
Well which is it?
According to various sources, it has been determined that Forskolin does have a binding site on adipocytes. (Ho and Shi 1984)
Everything checks out so far…but what does cAMP have to do with weight loss?
#2 What are the chain of biochemical events?
–>High levels of cAMP activates protein kinase A (PKA)
–>PKA activates hormone sensitive lipase (HSL) via phosphorylation
(King 2014)
#3 What are the metabolic process?
–>ATGL breaks down TAGs to form a free fatty acid molecules and diacylglycerols (DAGs)
–>HSL breaks down DAGs to form monoacylglycerols and free fatty acids
(King 2014)
#4 Is there anything NUTRIGOLD isn’t telling us?
Of course there is! It would be poor marketing to reveal too much after all!
The product works better for men than it does for women. This is because in men, in addition to the active ingredient in Forskolin Gold™ targeting cAMP in adipocytes, it also increases testosterone levels. (Srivastava et al. 2002)
What does that have to do with anything?
Well, testosterone decreases body fat. (Singh et al. 2006) It’s as simple as that.
How does it do this exactly?
It hypothesized that it increases intra-testicular cAMP. Which mimics the mechanisms of the leuteinizing hormone (LH). (Srivastava et al. 2002) LH is responsible for stimulating the Leydig cells to produce testosterone.
Conclusion?
Forskolin Gold™ is the truth! It can indeed support fat metabolism and fat reduction. Does it support heart, digestive, and respiratory health, and healthy vision? Well, that’s a very different story and unfortunately we don’t have the time to get into that today…stay tuned!
WARNING: Like any other drug, please use as prescribed. Over-dosing does not maximize results!
–ZEE B-)
References
Amazon.com,. 2014. Nutrigold Forskolin Supplement Facts. Image. Accessed November 6. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/71gCGF-OJbL._SL1200_.jpg.
Amazon.com,. 2014. Nutrigold Forskolin Benefits. Image. Accessed November 6. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/613u3X94gKL._SL1200_.jpg.
coleusforskohlii.org,. 2013. Coleus Forskohlii. Image. http://coleusforskohlii.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/coleus-forskohlii-root-extract-800×800.jpg.
Ho, R, and Q Shi. 1984. ‘Evidence For A Single Forskolin-Binding Site In Rat Adipocyte Membrane. Studies Of [14,15-3H]Dihydroforskolin Binding And Adenylate Cyclase Activation.’. Journal Of Biological Chemistry 259 (12): 7630-7636. http://www.jbc.org/content/259/12/7630.short.
King, Michael. 2014. ‘Lipolysis, Fat Mobilization, Fatty Acid (Beta, Alpha, Omega) Oxidation, Ketogenesis’. Themedicalbiochemistrypage.Org. http://themedicalbiochemistrypage.org/fatty-acid-oxidation.php.
King, Micheal. 2013. ‘Adipose Tissue: Fat Metabolism, Adipokines, Inflammation’.Themedicalbiochemistrypage.Org. http://themedicalbiochemistrypage.org/adipose-tissue.php.
NUTRIGOLD,. 2014. NUTRIGOLD Forskolin. Image. Accessed November 6. http://nutrigold.com/images/products/forskolin.jpg.
Singh, Rajan, Jorge N. Artaza, Wayne E. Taylor, Melissa Braga, Xin Yuan, Nestor F. Gonzalez-Cadavid, and Shalender Bhasin. 2006. ‘Testosterone Inhibits Adipogenic Differentiation In 3T3-L1 Cells: Nuclear Translocation Of Androgen Receptor Complex With Β-Catenin And T-Cell Factor 4 May Bypass Canonical Wnt Signaling To Down-Regulate Adipogenic Transcription Factors’.Endocrinology 147 (1): 141-154. doi:10.1210/en.2004-1649.
Srivastava, Sharad Kumar, Manjoosha Chaubey, S. Khatoon, A.K.S. Rawat, and Shanta Mehrotra. 2002. ‘Pharmacognostic Evaluation Of Coleus Forskohlii’. Pharmaceutical Biology 40 (2): 129-134. doi:10.1076/phbi.40.2.129.5842.
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