{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,5]],"date-time":"2025-12-05T15:58:19Z","timestamp":1764950299503,"version":"3.46.0"},"reference-count":35,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"24","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,5]],"date-time":"2025-12-05T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1764892800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"University of Johannesburg (UJ) Research Committee"},{"name":"Faculty of Science (FoS) Research Committee"},{"name":"UJ Global Excellence and Stature (GES) Doctoral Scholarship"},{"name":"National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa","award":["SRUG2204285188"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["SRUG2204285188"]}]},{"name":"UJ FoS and URC Grant"},{"name":"South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) Self-Initiated Research (SIR) Grant"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Foods"],"abstract":"<jats:p>This study investigated the anti-obesogenic effects of 3D-printed snacks\u2014developed from indigenous composite inks of cowpea, sorghum, and orange-fleshed sweet potato\u2014in male and female Wistar rats fed a high-fat diet (HFD). Four experimental diets (TD1\u2013TD4) were formulated from snacks using two blend ratios (33.33%:33.33%:33.33%) and 50%:10%:40%) and two processing states (raw and bioprocessed). Following a five-week HFD-induction period, the rats were supplemented for an additional five weeks with diets containing 20% of these snacks, Orlistat, or HFD alone. Physiological assessments included body weight, fasting glucose, insulin, homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), serum lipids, sex hormones, angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) activity, and histological evaluation of cardiac tissue. HFD feeding induced hyperglycemia, dyslipidemia, and insulin resistance. Supplementation with the 3D-printed snacks improved glycemic control, with the TD4 (bioprocessed blend; 50:10:40%) restoring glucose levels close to baseline. TD1 and TD2 (raw blends) improved lipid and hormonal profiles in females, whereas TD3 (bioprocessed blend; 33.33%:33.33%:33.33%) significantly reduced triglycerides and elevated HDL in males. Importantly, only TD1 (raw blend; 33.33%:33.33%:33.33%) significantly reduced ACE activity in males, providing a unique cardioprotective mechanism not observed with other snack formulations. Histological analyses revealed inflammatory infiltration and fibroplasia in HFD and Orlistat groups, whereas all 3D-printed snacks preserved normal myocardial architecture without necrosis or fibrosis. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that 3D-printed snacks derived from indigenous composite inks improved metabolic dysfunctions associated with diet-induced obesity. The optimal formulation appears application-specific: TD4 for glycemic control, TD3 for lipid management in males, and TD1\/TD2 for metabolic improvements in females.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/foods14244185","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,5]],"date-time":"2025-12-05T15:11:24Z","timestamp":1764947484000},"page":"4185","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Three-Dimensional (3D)-Printed Snacks from Indigenous Composite Inks Improve Metabolic Dysfunctions Associated with High-Fat-Diet-Induced Obesity in Wistar Rats"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"14","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1504-3153","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Abdullahi Adekilekun","family":"Jimoh","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Centre for Innovative Food Research (CIFR), Department of Biotechnology and Food Technology, Faculty of Science, University of Johannesburg, Doornfontein, Johannesburg 2094, South Africa"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2521-8957","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Abidemi Paul","family":"Kappo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Molecular Biophysics and Structural Biology Group, Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park, Johannesburg 2005, South Africa"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4006-7870","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Fehintoluwa Joy","family":"Femi-Olabisi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biochemistry, Mountain Top University, Prayer City 110106, Nigeria"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Yusuf Olamide","family":"Kewuyemi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Centre for Innovative Food Research (CIFR), Department of Biotechnology and Food Technology, Faculty of Science, University of Johannesburg, Doornfontein, Johannesburg 2094, South Africa"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4123-620X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Omolola Mary","family":"Omosebi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Food Science and Technology, Mountain Top University, Prayer City 110106, Nigeria"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3757-5137","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Oluwafemi Ayodeji","family":"Adebo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Centre for Innovative Food Research (CIFR), Department of Biotechnology and Food Technology, Faculty of Science, University of Johannesburg, Doornfontein, Johannesburg 2094, South Africa"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,5]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Abad-Jim\u00e9nez, Z., and Vezza, T. 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