Liver alcohol oxidizing systems and gluconeogenic enzyme activities after long term ethanol application in cold exposed guinea pigs

Protective effects of sulfated polysaccharides from Lentinula edodes on the lung and liver of MODS mice

In this work, the effects of sulfated polysaccharides from Lentinula edodes (SPLE) on zymosan (ZYM)-induced multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) mice were investigated. Using the MODS mice model, biochemical works have already shown that in mice treated with SPLE, the lung parameters of GGT, C3 and hs-CRP were down-regulated and the hepatic parameters of TC, TG, ALT and AST, HDLC, LDL-C and VLDL-C were improved, the serum levels of CK, Cr and Amy were decreased, and the levels of inflammatory factors such as TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6 and IL-10 were also reduced, the activity of antioxidant enzymes SOD and CAT enhanced, and the content of MDA was reduced. In addition, histopathology of the lung and liver confirmed the beneficial effects of SPLE on MODS mice, indicating that SPLE played a role in protecting the organ function of MODS mice. In addition, SPLE was characterized as a sulfated β-glucan linked by β-type glycosidic bonds. These conclusions indicated that SPLE had effective antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities, and could be used as a functional food and medicine to prevent MODS.

Effect of interscapular brown adipose tissue denervation on body weight and feed efficiency in alcohol drinking rats

In rats, chronic alcohol intake increases energy expenditure and enhances interscapular brown adipose tissue (IBAT) mass and activity. It is known that alcohol intake is mainly preprandial. In man, alcohol intake during a meal increases postprandial thermogenesis. Since diet-induced thermogenesis is mediated by the sympathetic nervous system, the effect of IBAT surgical denervation was examined on body weight (BW), food intake (FI) and feed efficiency (FE) in alcohol drinking rats. Alcohol drinking rats gained significantly less BW than water drinking rats; FI was identical and so FE was less in alcohol-treated animals. After sympathectomy, the water drinking group was identical to its own control group for BW gain, FI and FE. BW gain of sympathectomized drinking rats was significantly higher than that of controls. FI and FE were nearly identical. It is concluded that the increase in thermogenesis observed in chronic alcohol-treated rats is partly suppressed by sympathectomy. This increase could also involve other BAT mass and other tissues in the whole rat.

Chronic alcohol intake induces the oxidative capacity of brown adipose tissue in the rat

The present study was carried out to elucidate the effect of long-term alcohol intake on the oxidative capacity of brown adipose tissue in the rat. Rats housed at room temperature were given water containing 10% ethanol for six months, while controls received water alone. Fully cold-acclimated rats (exposed to +4 degrees C for 6 weeks) served as the second control group. Alcohol did not alter the food intake of the rats compared with the controls kept at room temperature, but it did cause a mean decrease of 8 ml in fluid consumption. There was no difference in the increase in body weight between the groups housed at room temperature. Body weight of the rats exposed to cold did not change during cold acclimation. No morphological liver changes were observed in alcohol-fed rats, but some changes related to long-term alcohol consumption were found in the myocardium. Chronic alcohol intake increased the quantity of brown adipose tissue and its protein content but changes were not as great as in the cold-acclimated rats nor did alcohol increase protein content per unit of the adipose tissue as did cold. On the other hand, the specific activity of mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase increased by 90% and that of succinate dehydrogenase by 130% in alcohol-fed rats, whereas specific activities of these enzymes displayed little or no change in the cold-acclimated rats. Results suggest that chronic alcohol ingestion induces the oxidative capacity of the interscapular brown adipose tissue in the rat, increasing the mass of BAT and specific activities of mitochondrial enzymes.