Abstract: The inhibitory of lipid synthesis by the alcohol extract of ginseng-clove was explored and its mechanism was preliminarily studied. A lipid screening model of Mortierella alpina (MA) which is rich in fatty acids was established, and 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) was used to screen out the optimal proportion and extraction solvent of ginseng-clove for inhibiting lipid synthesis. Then the content of triglyceride in MA was measured, its morphology was observed by electron microscope, and fatty acid was analyzed by GC-MS. The mRNA expressions of acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC), ATP-citric acid lyase (ACLY), fatty acid synthase (FAS) and malic enzyme (ME) were determined by RT-PCR, and the activities of related enzymes were detected. 3T3-L1 preadipocytes were demonstrated by MTT to determine proliferation viability and oil red O staining to determine the ability of lipid accumulation in cell differentiation. The results showed that the optimal ratio and extraction medium for the inhibition of lipid synthesis was the 100% alcohol extract of ginseng and clove (AEGC) with a 1:2 mass ratio of ginseng and clove. The extract was not cytotoxic to the proliferation and differen-tiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes at concentrations ranging from 0~30 μg/mL, and inhibited the formation and accumulation of triglycerides during the differentiation of adipocytes. The RT-PCR showed that the mRNA levels of ACC, ACLY, FAS and ME in MA were significantly downregulated (P<0.05) and the enzymatic activities of ME, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G-6-P), ACLY and FAS were significantly inhibited (P<0.05) compared with the blank group after AEGC intervention. The AEGC obtained from the screening inhibited lipid synthesis in MA and 3T3-L1.