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Published on: November 1, 2019
Early exposure to a high-fat diet has more drastic consequences on metabolism compared with exposure during adulthood
L F Barella1, J C de Oliveira, R C S Branco
1Department of Cell Biology and Genetics, Laboratory of Secretion Cell Biology, State University of Maringá, Maringá, Paraná, Brazil.
Insights
Introducing a high-fat diet early in life, around weaning, causes more severe metabolic and nervous system changes than introducing it in adulthood. This early exposure significantly impacts body weight control, glucose homeostasis, and parasympathetic activity.
Area of Science:
- Endocrinology
- Metabolic Syndrome Research
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Dietary habits established during critical developmental periods can have long-lasting health consequences.
- Understanding the impact of high-fat diets (HFD) on metabolic and autonomic functions is crucial for public health.
- Peripubertal development is a sensitive window for metabolic programming.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the differential effects of high-fat diet introduction during peripubertal phase versus adulthood on body weight, glucose homeostasis, and parasympathetic tonus in rats.
- To compare the severity of metabolic and autonomic dysregulation induced by early-life HFD exposure versus adult HFD exposure.
Main Methods:
- Male Wistar rats were assigned to either a normal-fat diet (NF) or high-fat diet (HF) from weaning (HF81, NF81) or adulthood (HF120, NF120) for 60 days.
- Assessment of adiposity, glucose tolerance tests, insulin sensitivity (using K_itt), and vagal nerve activity recordings.
- Statistical analysis to compare outcomes between diet and age groups.
Main Results:
- HFD significantly increased adiposity in all groups, with greater accumulation in rats fed HFD since weaning (HF81).
- HF-fed rats exhibited glucose intolerance, elevated insulin levels, and severe insulin resistance (low K_itt), with HF81 showing greater insulin resistance than HF120.
- HF-fed rats displayed higher parasympathetic activity compared to NF-fed rats, regardless of age.
Conclusions:
- Both early-life and adult high-fat diet consumption impair glycemic homeostasis and parasympathetic activity.
- High-fat diet consumption immediately after weaning leads to more severe metabolic and autonomic dysfunction compared to consumption during adulthood.
- These findings highlight the critical impact of early-life nutrition on long-term metabolic health and autonomic regulation.
Abstract:
The aim of this study was determine whether the introduction of a high-fat diet during the peripubertal phase induces significant changes in body weight control, glucose homeostasis and the parasympathetic tonus compared with the administration of this diet to adult rats. High-fat diet was offered to male Wistar rats at weaning or during adulthood. A group of rats received high-fat diet for 60 days, from weaning to 81-day-old (HF81) or from 60 to 120-day-old (HF120), whereas 2 other groups received a normal-fat diet (i. e., NF81 and NF120). We analyzed adiposity, glucose homeostasis, insulin sensitivity, and vagal nerve activity. High-fat diet increased the accumulation of adipose tissue in all of the rats, but the difference was greater in the rats that were fed the high-fat diet since weaning (p<0.001). The HF rats showed glucose intolerance with high levels of insulin secretion during the glucose tolerance test (p<0.01). Rats that were fed the high-fat diet presented severe insulin resistance, indicated by a low K itt (p<0.01). Interestingly, the HF81 rats exhibited greater insulin resistance compared with the HF120 rats (p<0.05). The recordings of vagus nerve activity showed that the HF rats had higher parasympathetic activity than the NF rats irrespective of age (p<0.01). Our results show that a high-fat diet offered to rats just after weaning or in adulthood both cause impairment of glycemic homeostasis and imbalance in parasympathetic activity. Importantly, the consumption of high-fat diet immediately after weaning has more drastic consequences compared with the consumption of the same diet during adulthood.
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