Metabolic programming of adipose tissue in female C57Bl 6 mice offspring by maternal high fat feeding and obesity results in greater adaptability to dietary fat content and resistance to high fat diet-induced glucose intolerance compared to male mice

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-15

Maternal lifestyle influence may be a factor in the worldwide prevalence of obesity and its complications, including diabetes. Studies investigating the effect of the perinatal maternal environment have produced a range of results, sometimes diametrically opposite. The present study was designed to investigate how obesity and weight gain in pregnant mice affects energy balance, body composition and glucose homeostasis in their offspring, both at a young age on standard diet and when older and fed a high-fat diet. At six weeks of age both male and female offspring from mothers fed a high fat diet had a shorter body length than those from mothers fed standard chow. In contrast to males, female offspring also contained a higher proportion of fat and had elevated circulating leptin and adiponectin. Their gonadal fat pads were heavier and contained larger adipocytes, whereas male offspring had proportionally more smaller adipocytes. Six-week-old female, but not male, offspring had increased gonadal fat gene expression of acetyl CoA carboxylase 1, the rate-limiting step in lipid biosynthesis, and decreased gene expression of carnitine palmitoyl transferase 1, the rate-limiting step in fatty acid oxidation. Maternal high fat diet had no effect on glucose tolerance in six-week-old mice, but this was achieved with higher insulin levels in females. Contrastingly, when the offspring were fed a high fat diet for three months, female, but not male, offspring were leaner than those from mothers fed standard chow. Their gonadal fat depots were lighter and the adipocytes were smaller. Female, but not male, offspring fed high fat diet had decreased gonadal fat gene expression of acetyl CoA carboxylase 1, and increased gene expression of carnitine palmitoyl transferase 1. High fat diet-induced glucose intolerance and elevated plasma insulin concentration were improved in female, but not male, offspring. Plasma leptin and adiponectin remained higher in female offspring on high fat diet with resistin levels being lower. These results suggest that the gonadal fat of female offspring is more adaptable to different levels of dietary fat exposure, increasing storage when levels are low and increasing oxidation when levels are high. This may help female offspring be more resistant to the detrimental effects of high fat diet than male mice.

2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annelene Govindsamy ◽  
Samira Ghoor ◽  
Marlon E. Cerf

Fetal programming refers to an intrauterine stimulus or insult that shapes growth, development and health outcomes. Dependent on the quality and quantity, dietary fats can be beneficial or detrimental for the growth of the fetus and can alter insulin signaling by regulating the expression of key factors. The effects of varying dietary fat content on the expression profiles of factors in the neonatal female and male rat heart were investigated and analyzed in control (10% fat), 20F (20% fat), 30F (30% fat) and 40F (40% fat which was a high fat diet used to induce high fat programming) neonatal rats. The whole neonatal heart was immunostained for insulin receptor, glucose transporter 4 (Glut4) and forkhead box protein 1 (FoxO1), followed by image analysis. The expression of 84 genes, commonly associated with the insulin signaling pathway, were then examined in 40F female and 40F male offspring. Maintenance on diets, varying in fat content during fetal life, altered the expression of cardiac factors, with changes induced from 20% fat in female neonates, but from 30% fat in male neonates. Further, CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein alpha (Cebpa) was upregulated in 40F female neonates. There was, however, differential expression of several insulin signaling genes in 40F (high fat programmed) offspring, with some tending to significance but most differences were in fold changes (≥1.5 fold). The increased immunoreactivity for insulin receptor, Glut4 and FoxO1 in 20F female and 30F male neonatal rats may reflect a compensatory response to programming to maintain cardiac physiology. Cebpa was upregulated in female offspring maintained on a high fat diet, with fold increases in other insulin signaling genes viz. Aebp1, Cfd (adipsin), Adra1d, Prkcg, Igfbp, Retn (resistin) and Ucp1. In female offspring maintained on a high fat diet, increased Cebpa gene expression (concomitant with fold increases in other insulin signaling genes) may reflect cardiac stress and an adaptative response to cardiac inflammation, stress and/or injury, after high fat programming. Diet and the sex are determinants of cardiac physiology and pathophysiology, reflecting divergent mechanisms that are sex-specific.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott M. Bolam ◽  
Vidit V. Satokar ◽  
Subhajit Konar ◽  
Brendan Coleman ◽  
Andrew Paul Monk ◽  
...  

Background: Over half of women of reproductive age are now overweight or obese. The impact of maternal high-fat diet (HFD) is emerging as an important factor in the development and health of musculoskeletal tissues in offspring, however there is a paucity of evidence examining its effects on tendon. Alterations in the early life environment during critical periods of tendon growth therefore have the potential to influence tendon health that cross the lifespan. We hypothesised that a maternal HFD would alter biomechanical, morphological and gene expression profiles of adult offspring rotator cuff tendon.Materials and Methods: Female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to either: control diet (CD; 10% kcal or 43 mg/g from fat) or HFD (45% kcal or 235 mg/g from fat) 14 days prior to mating and throughout pregnancy and lactation. Eight female and male offspring from each maternal diet group were weaned onto a standard chow diet and then culled at postnatal day 100 for tissue collection. Supraspinatus tendons were used for mechanical testing and histological assessment (cellularity, fibre organisation, nuclei shape) and tail tendons were collected for gene expression analysis.Results: A maternal HFD increased the elasticity (Young's Modulus) in the supraspinatus tendon of male offspring. Female offspring tendon biomechanical properties were not affected by maternal HFD. Gene expression of SCX and COL1A1 were reduced in male and female offspring of maternal HFD, respectively. Despite this, tendon histological organisation were similar between maternal diet groups in both sexes.Conclusion: An obesogenic diet during pregnancy increased tendon elasticity in male, but not female, offspring. This is the first study to demonstrate that maternal diet can modulate the biomechanical properties of offspring tendon. A maternal HFD may be an important factor in regulating adult offspring tendon homeostasis that may predispose offspring to developing tendinopathies and adverse tendon outcomes in later life.


2016 ◽  
Vol 310 (11) ◽  
pp. E886-E899 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pia Kiilerich ◽  
Lene Secher Myrmel ◽  
Even Fjære ◽  
Qin Hao ◽  
Floor Hugenholtz ◽  
...  

Female C57BL/6J mice were fed a regular low-fat diet or high-fat diets combined with either high or low protein-to-sucrose ratios during their entire lifespan to examine the long-term effects on obesity development, gut microbiota, and survival. Intake of a high-fat diet with a low protein/sucrose ratio precipitated obesity and reduced survival relative to mice fed a low-fat diet. By contrast, intake of a high-fat diet with a high protein/sucrose ratio attenuated lifelong weight gain and adipose tissue expansion, and survival was not significantly altered relative to low-fat-fed mice. Our findings support the notion that reduced survival in response to high-fat/high-sucrose feeding is linked to obesity development. Digital gene expression analyses, further validated by qPCR, demonstrated that the protein/sucrose ratio modulated global gene expression over time in liver and adipose tissue, affecting pathways related to metabolism and inflammation. Analysis of fecal bacterial DNA using the Mouse Intestinal Tract Chip revealed significant changes in the composition of the gut microbiota in relation to host age and dietary fat content, but not the protein/sucrose ratio. Accordingly, dietary fat rather than the protein/sucrose ratio or adiposity is a major driver shaping the gut microbiota, whereas the effect of a high-fat diet on survival is dependent on the protein/sucrose ratio.


1997 ◽  
Vol 17 (5) ◽  
pp. 2888-2896 ◽  
Author(s):  
W S Blair ◽  
B R Cullen

We describe a unique gain-of-function mutant of the TATA-binding protein (TBP) subunit of Saccharomyces cerevisiae TFIID that, at least in part, renders transcriptional transactivators dispensable for efficient mRNA expression. The yTBPN69S mutant enhances transcription from weaker yeast promoter elements by up to 50-fold yet does not significantly increase gene expression directed by highly active promoters. Therefore, this TBP mutant and transcriptional transactivators appear to affect a common rate-limiting step in transcription initiation. Consistent with the hypothesis that this step is TFIID recruitment, tethering of TBP to a target promoter via a heterologous DNA binding domain, which is known to bypass the need for transcriptional transactivators, also nullifies the enhancing effect exerted by the N69S mutation. These data provide genetic support for the hypothesis that TFIID recruitment represents a rate-limiting step in the initiation of mRNA transcription that is specifically enhanced by transcriptional transactivators.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 329 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelly Glendining ◽  
Christine Jasoni

Maternal obesity during pregnancy increases risk for neurodevelopmental disorders in offspring, although the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Epigenetic deregulation associates with many neurodevelopmental disorders, and recent evidence indicates that maternal nutritional status can alter chromatin marks in the offspring brain. Thus, maternal obesity may disrupt epigenetic regulation of gene expression during offspring neurodevelopment. Using a C57BL/6 mouse model, we investigated whether maternal high fat diet (mHFD)-induced obesity alters the expression of genes previously implicated in the etiology of neurodevelopmental disorders within the Gestational Day 17.5 (GD 17.5) offspring hippocampus. We found significant two-fold upregulation of oxytocin receptor (Oxtr) mRNA in the hippocampus of male, but not female, GD 17.5 offspring from mHFD-induced obese dams (p < 0.05). To determine whether altered histone binding at the Oxtr gene promoter may underpin these transcriptional changes, we then performed chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP). Consistent with the Oxtr transcriptional changes, we observed increased binding of active histone mark H3K9Ac at the Oxtr transcriptional start site (TSS) in the hippocampus of mHFD male (p < 0.05), but not female, offspring. Together, these data indicate an increased vulnerability of male offspring to maternal obesity-induced changes in chromatin remodeling processes that regulate gene expression in the developing hippocampus, and contributes to our understanding of how early life nutrition affects the offspring brain epigenome.


2014 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 184-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jana Wolf ◽  
Lori A. Passmore

Poly(A) tails are important regulators of mRNA stability and translational efficiency. Cytoplasmic removal of poly(A) tails by 3′→5′ exonucleases (deadenylation) is the rate-limiting step in mRNA degradation. Two exonuclease complexes contribute the majority of the deadenylation activity in eukaryotes: Ccr4–Not and Pan2–Pan3. These can be specifically recruited to mRNA to regulate mRNA stability or translational efficiency, thereby fine-tuning gene expression. In the present review, we discuss the activities and roles of the Pan2–Pan3 deadenylation complex.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-24
Author(s):  
Purevsuren Losol ◽  
Lindert P Mercken ◽  
Helena L Fisk ◽  
Philip C Calder ◽  
John W Holloway ◽  
...  

Abstract Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) modulate immune function and have been associated with risk of childhood atopy and asthma. We investigated the effect of maternal fat intake in mice on PUFA status, elongase and desaturase gene expression, inflammatory markers and lung function in the offspring. C57BL/6J mice (n=32) were fed either standard chow (C, 21% kcal fat) or a high fat diet (HFD, 45% kcal fat) for 4 weeks prior to conception and during gestation and lactation. At 21 days of age, offspring were weaned onto either the HFD or C, generating four experimental groups: C/C, C/HF, HF/C and HF/HF. Plasma and liver fatty acid composition were measured by gas chromatography and gene expression by qPCR. Lung resistance to methacholine was assessed. Arachidonic acid concentrations in offspring plasma and liver phospholipids were increased by HFD; this effect was greater in the post-natal HFD group. Docosahexaenoic acid concentration in offspring liver phospholipids was increased in response to HFD and was higher in the post-natal HFD group. Post-natal HFD increased hepatic FADS2 and ELOVL5 expression in male offspring, whereas maternal HFD elevated expression of FADS1 and FADS2 in female offspring comparing to males. Post-natal HFD increased expression of IL-6 and CCL2 in perivascular adipose tissue. The HFD lowered lung resistance to methacholine. Excessive maternal fat intake during development modifies hepatic PUFA status in offspring through regulation of gene expression of enzymes that are involved in PUFA biosynthesis and modifies the development of the offspring lungs leading to respiratory dysfunction.


2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-100
Author(s):  
Abbasali Gaeini ◽  
Mohamadreza Baghaban Eslaminejad ◽  
Siroos Choobineh ◽  
Neda Mousavi ◽  
Sadegh Satarifard ◽  
...  

Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 2885
Author(s):  
Dawid Gawliński ◽  
Kinga Gawlińska ◽  
Irena Smaga

In recent years, strong evidence has emerged that exposure to a maternal high-fat diet (HFD) provokes changes in the structure, function, and development of the offspring’s brain and may induce several neurodevelopmental and psychiatric illnesses. The aims of this study were to evaluate the effects of a maternal HFD during pregnancy and lactation on depressive-like behavior and Cnr1 gene expression (encoding the CB1 receptor) in brain structures of rat offspring and to investigate the epigenetic mechanism involved in this gene expression. We found that a maternal HFD during pregnancy and lactation induced a depressive-like phenotype at postnatal days (PNDs) 28 and 63. We found that a maternal HFD decreased the Cnr1 mRNA levels in the prefrontal cortex with the increased levels of miR-212-5p and methylation of CpG islands at the Cnr1 promoter and reduced the level of Cnr1 gene expression in the dorsal striatum with an increased level of miR-154-3p in adolescent male offspring. A contrasting effect of a maternal HFD was observed in the hippocampus, where upregulation of Cnr1 gene expression was accompanied by a decrease of miR-154-3p (at PNDs 28 and 63) and miR-212-5p (at PND 63) expression and methylation of CpG islands at the Cnr1 promoter in male offspring. In summary, we showed that a maternal HFD during pregnancy and lactation triggered several epigenetic mechanisms in the brains of rat offspring, which may be related to long-lasting alterations in the next generation and produce behavioral changes in offspring, including a depressive-like phenotype.


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