Effect of liver glycogen content on glucose production in running rats

1989 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
pp. 318-322 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Vissing ◽  
J. L. Wallace ◽  
H. Galbo

The influence of supranormal compared with normal hepatic glycogen levels on hepatic glucose production (Ra) during exercise was investigated in chronically catheterized rats. Supranormal hepatic glycogen levels were obtained by a 24-h fast-24-h refeeding regimen. During treadmill running for 35 min at a speed of 21 m/min, Ra and plasma glucose increased more (P less than 0.05) and liver glucogen breakdown was larger in fasted-refed compared with control rats, although the stimuli for Ra were higher in control rats, the plasma concentrations of insulin and glucose being lower (P less than 0.05) in control compared with fasted-refed rats. Also, plasma concentrations of glucagon and both catecholamines tended to be higher and muscle glycogenolysis lower in control compared with fasted-refed rats. Lipid metabolism was similar in the two groups. The results indicate that hepatic glycogenolysis during exercise is directly related to hepatic glycogen content. The smaller endocrine glycogenolytic signal in face of higher plasma glucose concentrations in fasted-refed compared with control rats is indicative of metabolic feedback control of glucose mobilization during exercise. However, the higher exercise-induced increase in Ra, plasma glucose, and liver glycogen breakdown in fasted-refed compared with control rats indicates that metabolic feedback mechanisms are not able to accurately match Ra to the metabolic needs of working muscles.

2002 ◽  
Vol 92 (1) ◽  
pp. 188-194 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victoria Matas Bonjorn ◽  
Martin G. Latour ◽  
Patrice Bélanger ◽  
Jean-Marc Lavoie

The purpose of the present study was to test the hypothesis that a prior period of exercise is associated with an increase in hepatic glucagon sensitivity. Hepatic glucose production (HGP) was measured in four groups of anesthetized rats infused with glucagon (2 μg · kg−1 · min−1 iv) over a period of 60 min. Among these groups, two were normally fed and, therefore, had a normal level of liver glycogen (NG). One of these two groups was killed at rest (NG-Re) and the other after a period of exercise (NG-Ex; 60 min of running, 15–26 m/min, 0% grade). The two other groups of rats had a high hepatic glycogen level (HG), which had been increased by a fast-refed diet, and were also killed either at rest (HG-Re) or after exercise (HG-Ex). Plasma glucagon and insulin levels were increased similarly in all four conditions. Glucagon-induced hyperglycemia was higher ( P < 0.01) in the HG-Re group than in all other groups. HGP in the HG-Re group was not, however, on the whole more elevated than in the NG-Re group. Exercised rats (NG-Ex and HG-Ex) had higher hyperglycemia, HGP, and glucose utilization than rested rats in the first 10 min of the glucagon infusion. HG-Ex group had the highest HGP throughout the 60-min experiment. It is concluded that hyperglucagonemia-induced HGP is stimulated by a prior period of exercise, suggesting an increased sensitivity of the liver to glucagon during exercise.


1996 ◽  
Vol 270 (1) ◽  
pp. E186-E191 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. F. Petersen ◽  
T. Price ◽  
G. W. Cline ◽  
D. L. Rothman ◽  
G. I. Shulman

Relative contributions of net hepatic glycogenolysis and gluconeogenesis to glucose production during the first 12 h of a fast were studied in 13 healthy volunteers by noninvasively measuring hepatic glycogen content using 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Rates of net hepatic glycogenolysis were calculated by multiplying the change in liver glycogen content with liver volume determined by magnetic resonance imaging. Rates of gluconeogenesis were calculated as the difference between rates of glucose production determined with an infusion of [6,6-2H]-glucose and net hepatic glycogenolysis. At 6 P.M. a liquid mixed meal (1,000 kcal; 60% as glucose) was given, to which [2-2H]glucose was added to trace glucose absorption. Hepatic glycogen content was measured between 11 P.M. and 1 A.M. and between 3 and 6 A.M. At 11 P.M. the concentration was 470 mM and it decreased linearly during the night. The mean liver volume was 1.47 +/- 0.06 liters. Net hepatic glycogenolysis (5.8 +/- 0.8 mumol.kg body wt-1.min-1) accounted for, on average, 45 +/- 6% and gluconeogenesis for 55 +/- 6% of the rate of whole body glucose production (12.6 +/- 0.6 mumol.kg body wt-1.min-1). In conclusion, this study shows that, even early in the phase of the postabsorptive period when liver glycogen stores are maximal, gluconeogenesis contributes approximately 50% to hepatic glucose production.


2015 ◽  
Vol 100 (7) ◽  
pp. 2525-2531 ◽  
Author(s):  
Satya Dash ◽  
Changting Xiao ◽  
Cecilia Morgantini ◽  
Khajag Koulajian ◽  
Gary F. Lewis

Purpose: In addition to its direct action on the liver to lower hepatic glucose production, insulin action in the central nervous system (CNS) also lowers hepatic glucose production in rodents after 4 hours. Although CNS insulin action (CNSIA) modulates hepatic glycogen synthesis in dogs, it has no net effect on hepatic glucose output over a 4-hour period. The role of CNSIA in regulating plasma glucose has recently been examined in humans and is the focus of this review. Methods and Results: Intransal insulin (INI) administration increases CNS insulin concentration. Hence, INI can address whether CNSIA regulates plasma glucose concentration in humans. We and three other groups have sought to answer this question, with differing conclusions. Here we will review the critical aspects of each study, including its design, which may explain these discordant conclusions. Conclusions: The early glucose-lowering effect of INI is likely due to spillover of insulin into the systemic circulation. In the presence of simultaneous portal and CNS hyperinsulinemia, portal insulin action is dominant. INI administration does lower plasma glucose independent of peripheral insulin concentration (between ∼3 and 6 h after administration), suggesting that CNSIA may play a role in glucose homeostasis in the late postprandial period when its action is likely greatest and portal insulin concentration is at baseline. The potential physiological role and purpose of this pathway are discussed in this review. Because the effects of INI are attenuated in patients with type 2 diabetes and obesity, this is unlikely to be of therapeutic utility.


2005 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 292-303 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Richard Pencek ◽  
Patrick T. Fueger ◽  
Raul C. Camacho ◽  
David H. Wasserman

The liver is anatomically well situated to regulate blood glucose. It is positioned downstream from the pancreas, which releases the key regulatory hormones glucagon and insulin. It is also just downstream from the gut, permitting efficient extraction of ingested glucose and preventing large excursions in systemic glucose after a glucose-rich meal. The position of the liver is not as well situated from the standpoint of experimentation and clinical assessment, as its primary blood supply is impossible to access in conscious human subjects. Over the last 20 years, to study hepatic glucose metabolism during and after exercise, we have utilized a conscious dog model which permits sampling of the blood that perfuses (portal vein, artery) and drains (hepatic vein) the liver. Our work has demonstrated the key role of exercise-induced changes in glucagon and insulin in stimulating hepatic glycogenolysis and gluconeogenesis during exercise. Recently we showed that portal venous infusion of the pharmacological agent 5'-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide-1-beta-D-ribofuranoside leads to a marked increase in hepatic glucose production. Based on this, we propose that the concentration of AMP may be a component of a physiological pathway for stimulating hepatic glucose production during exercise. Insulin-stimulated hepatic glucose uptake is increased following exercise by an undefined mechanism that is independent of liver glycogen content. The fate of glucose taken up by the liver is critically dependent on hepatic glycogen stores, however, as glycogen deposition is greatly facilitated by prior glycogen depletion. Key words: pancreas, carbohydrate, feeding, exertion, AICAR


1986 ◽  
Vol 61 (4) ◽  
pp. 1457-1466 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Sonne ◽  
H. Galbo

In chronically catheterized rats hepatic glycogen was increased by fructose (approximately 10 g/kg) gavage (FF rats) or lowered by overnight food restriction (FR rats). [3-3H]- and [U-14C]glucose were infused before, during, and after treadmill running. During exercise the increase in glucose production (Ra) was always directly related to work intensity and faster than the increase in glucose disappearance, resulting in increased plasma glucose levels. At identical work-loads the increase in Ra and plasma glucose as well as liver glycogen breakdown were higher in FF and control (C) rats than in FR rats. Breakdown of muscle glycogen was less in FF than in C rats. Incorporation of [14C]glucose in glycogen at rest and mobilization of label during exercise partly explained that 14C estimates of carbohydrate metabolism disagreed with chemical measurements. In some muscles glycogen depletion was not accompanied by loss of 14C and 3H, indicating futile cycling of glucose. In FR rats a postexercise increase in liver glycogen was seen with 14C/3H similar to that of plasma glucose, indicating direct synthesis from glucose. In conclusion, in exercising rats the increase in glucose production is subjected to feedforward regulation and depends on the liver glycogen concentration. Endogenous glucose may be incorporated in glycogen in working muscle and may be used directly for liver glycogen synthesis rather than after conversion to trioses. Fructose ingestion may diminish muscular glycogen breakdown. The [14C]glucose infusion technique for determination of muscular glycogenolysis is of doubtful value in rats.


Diabetes ◽  
1986 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 186-191 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Hansen ◽  
R. Firth ◽  
M. Haymond ◽  
P. Cryer ◽  
R. Rizza

1996 ◽  
Vol 271 (1) ◽  
pp. R191-R199 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Kjaer ◽  
S. F. Pollack ◽  
T. Mohr ◽  
H. Weiss ◽  
G. W. Gleim ◽  
...  

To examine the importance of blood-borne vs. neural mechanisms for hormonal responses and substrate mobilization during exercise, six spinal cord-injured tetraplegic (C5-T1) males (mean age: 35 yr, range: 24-55 yr) were recruited to perform involuntary, electrically induced cycling [functional electrical stimulation (FES)] to fatigue for 24.6 +/- 2.3 min (mean and SE), and heart rate rose from 67 +/- 7 (rest) to 107 +/- 5 (exercise) beats/min. Voluntary arm cranking in tetraplegics (ARM) and voluntary leg cycling in six matched, long-term immobilized (2-12 mo) males (Vol) served as control experiments. In FES, peripheral glucose uptake increased [12.4 +/- 1.1 (rest) to 19.5 +/- 4.3 (exercise) mumol.min-1.kg-1; P < 0.05], whereas hepatic glucose production did not change from basal values [12.4 +/- 1.4 (rest) vs. 13.0 +/- 3.4 (exercise) mumol.min-1.kg-1]. Accordingly, plasma glucose decreased [from 5.4 +/- 0.3 (rest) to 4.7 +/- 0.3 (exercise) mmol/l; P < 0.05]. Plasma glucose did not change in response to ARM or Vol. Plasma free fatty acids and beta-hydroxybutyrate decreased only in FES experiments (P < 0.05). During FES, increases in growth hormone (GH) and epinephrine and decreases in insulin concentrations were abolished. Although subnormal throughout the exercise period, norepinephrine concentrations increased during FES, and responses of heart rate, adrenocorticotropic hormone, beta-endorphin, renin, lactate, and potassium were marked. In conclusion, during exercise, activity in motor centers and afferent muscle nerves is important for normal responses of GH, catecholamines, insulin, glucose production, and lipolysis. Humoral feedback and spinal or simple autonomic nervous reflex mechanisms are not sufficient. However, such mechanisms are involved in redundant control of heart rate and neuroendocrine activity in exercise.


2015 ◽  
Vol 308 (4) ◽  
pp. E306-E314 ◽  
Author(s):  
Satya S. Houin ◽  
Paul J. Rozance ◽  
Laura D. Brown ◽  
William W. Hay ◽  
Randall B. Wilkening ◽  
...  

Reduced fetal glucose supply, induced experimentally or as a result of placental insufficiency, produces an early activation of fetal glucose production. The mechanisms and substrates used to fuel this increased glucose production rate remain unknown. We hypothesized that in response to hypoglycemia, induced experimentally with maternal insulin infusion, the fetal liver would increase uptake of lactate and amino acids (AA), which would combine with hormonal signals to support hepatic glucose production. To test this hypothesis, metabolic studies were done in six late gestation fetal sheep to measure hepatic glucose and substrate flux before (basal) and after [days (d)1 and 4] the start of hypoglycemia. Maternal and fetal glucose concentrations decreased by 50% on d1 and d4 ( P < 0.05). The liver transitioned from net glucose uptake (basal, 5.1 ± 1.5 μmol/min) to output by d4 (2.8 ± 1.4 μmol/min; P < 0.05 vs. basal). The [U-13C]glucose tracer molar percent excess ratio across the liver decreased over the same period (basal: 0.98 ± 0.01, vs. d4: 0.89 ± 0.01, P < 0.05). Total hepatic AA uptake, but not lactate or pyruvate uptake, increased by threefold on d1 ( P < 0.05) and remained elevated throughout the study. This AA uptake was driven largely by decreased glutamate output and increased glycine uptake. Fetal plasma concentrations of insulin were 50% lower, while cortisol and glucagon concentrations increased 56 and 86% during hypoglycemia ( P < 0.05 for basal vs. d4). Thus increased hepatic AA uptake, rather than pyruvate or lactate uptake, and decreased fetal plasma insulin and increased cortisol and glucagon concentrations occur simultaneously with increased fetal hepatic glucose output in response to fetal hypoglycemia.


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