Peroxisomal palmitoyl-CoA oxidation in the Zucker rat

The effects of 3 or 6 days of starvation on hepatic peroxisomal palmitoyl-CoA oxidation were examined in adult lean and obese Zucker rats. When expressed either per mg of DNA or per total liver, obese rats had almost 2-fold higher oxidation rates than the lean rats. Within 6 days of starvation rates fell by 50% among both phenotypes. When data were expressed per 100 g body wt., lean and obese rats had similar rates, falling from a mean of 0.57 to 0.28 mumol/min per 100 g body wt. within 6 days of starvation. Peroxisomal oxidative changes paralleled mitochondrial beta-oxidative changes.