Abstract:Objective:To study the molecular mechanism of cinnamon polyphenols on improvement of insulin resistance in HepG2 cells in vitro. Method: The HepG2 cells were used as cell model. Cells were incubated with cinnamon polyphenols of three different concentrations (5, 10,15 mg·L-1).Control cells were incubated without cinnamon polyphenols. After 24 h,the mRNA expression of porcine glucose transporter 2 (GLUT2) phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase(PEPCK) and glucose-6-phosphatase (G-6-Pase) related to insulin resistance was detected by Real-time PCR(RT-PCR). Result: Compared with the control group, the RT-PCR showed the mRNA expression of GLUT2 decreased after being treated with the cinnamon polyphenols(P<0.05);the cinnamon polyphenols significantly decreased the expression of PEPCK and G-6-Pase mRNA(P<0.05,P<0.01),moreover, the cinnamon polyphenols inhibited the expression of PEPCK and G-6-Pase mRNA in a dose-dependent manner. Conclusion: Cinnamon polyphenols can significantly improve insulin-resistance of HepG2 cells and its mechanism is related to the inhibition of GLUT2,PEPCK, G-6-Pase gene expression.