Effects of myostatin gene knockout on white fat browning and related gene expression in type 2 diabetic mice

Myostatin (Mstn) plays an important role in adipocyte growth, differentiation and metabolism, leading to the development of obesity.

We aimed to explore the effect of Mstn on white fat browning in a mouse model of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Twelve wild-type (WT), 12 heterozygous (Mstn(+/-)) and 12 homozygous (Mstn(-/-)) male mice were randomly divided into 6 groups: WT, Mstn(+/-), Mstn(-/-), WT+DM, Mstn(+/-)+DM, and Mstn(-/-)+DM. The first 3 groups were fed normal chow, while the last 3 were fed high-fat diet and administered streptozotocin to generate T2DM. Subsequently, body mass, length, and white and brown fat masses were measured, after which Lee's index, white-brown ratio and fat index were calculated. The serum free fatty acid (FFA) levels were detected using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining was used to analyze white and brown fat cell morphology. The relative expression levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPARγ), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma coactivator-1 alpha (PGC-1α), uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1), and cluster of differentiation 137 (CD137) protein were determined with western blotting.

The Mstn(-/-) group displayed higher levels of PPARγ, PGC-1α and CD137 proteins in white and brown fat compared to the WT and Mstn(+/-) groups, while the expression level of UCP1 protein in the Mstn(-/-) group was higher than in the WT group. The expression levels of PPARγ, PGC-1α, UCP1, and CD137 proteins in the WT+DM group were lower than in the WT group. Moreover, PPARγ, PGC-1α, UCP1, and CD137 proteins were more highly expressed in the Mstn(-/-)+DM group compared to the WT+DM and Mstn(+/-)+DM groups.

The Mstn gene inhibition antagonizes obesity phenotypes, such as white fat accumulation and lipid metabolism derangement caused by T2DM, thus promoting white fat browning.